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The HTC One Google Edition is coming, but if you’ve already bought a One that doesn’t mean you have to miss out on pure unadulterated Android.
HTC says it’s “examining the best way to support early adopters of the One,” hinting at the possibility of Nexus-style stock Android coming to people who have already bought the phone — and, fingers crossed, people who want stock Android but can’t buy the Google Edition in their country.
The stripped-down Nexus-style HTC One is the second such Googlefied phone after the stock Android version of the Samsung Galaxy S4.
The Google version of the HTC One, announced yesterday, will come with pure Android, the factory-fresh version of Google’s mobile software without any extras or accoutrements. The regular HTC One comes with HTC’s Sense interface on top of basic Android, which adds features but isn’t to everyone’s taste.
The HTC One with Nexus user experience goes on sale through the Google Play Store on 26 June, but only in the US at first. It costs around £400 in colonial money, but there’s no word yet on a UK price or even whether this stock Android mobile will be available here at all.
Meanwhile Google will continue to make its own stock Android devices under the Nexus name. The next Nexus after the bargain-tastic Google Nexus 4 is likely to showcase the next version of Android, expected to be Key Lime Pie.
To find out more about this Google Edition business, hit play on our video below:
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Galaxy S4 Google Edition explained
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Will you be picking up a Google Edition of the HTC One? Which phone would benefit most from stock Android? And is Google doing the right thing with Google Editions and Nexus phones side-by-side? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or leave us an update on our Facebook wall.
