Related Articles
This morning we reported
on HTC’s Facebook announcement that there just wasn’t enough room on the
HTC
Desire to support both Android
2.3 Gingerbread and its own HTC Sense user interface. Hours later,
it has posted another
update simply stating, “Contrary to what we said earlier, we are
going to bring Gingerbread to HTC Desire.”
We have no further information as to why the decision was
overturned. But it could well have been in response to a huge user outcry, in a
similar vein to its decision
to unlock smart phone bootloaders.
Alternatively, someone with the keys to HTC’s Facebook page
is publishing things well before the company has had time to sit in a
darkened room and really think through the consequences. The company is now second
only to the coalition government in its U-turn rpm.
As expected, there are some incredulous responses to the
announcement. While some commenters sarcastically note that the engineers must’ve
received a sudden speed boost, others are concerned there may be
some catch. Those that have rooted their device and are
already running Gingerbread merely comment that HTC is too late to the party.
Perhaps there’s a slight glimmer of hope that HTC will allow users
to easily remove HTC Sense from the Desire and simply have plain
Gingerbread on board. Sense isn’t all bad — far from it, it has some great widgets — but most savvy users
prefer an Android that hasn’t been messed about with.
It’s an impossible dream that companies will always get things
right in the eyes of their customers. At least HTC seems to have
listened to its fan base and done the decent thing. We are a little
surprised that it seems HTC didn’t see this coming — perhaps it just enjoys hosting a lively discussion on its Facebook page.
There’s the nagging feeling HTC will allow Desire owners to
update their handsets to Gingerbread but that the experience will be
so awful there’s a “we told you so” moment. All smart phones have to
drop off the update curve at some point — look at Apple’s
iOS — but not when the handset has only just celebrated its first
birthday.
What do you think of HTC’s recent gaffes? Are you still a loyal fan or are you planning to defect to another manufacturer for your next Android fix?
