HTC to deliver quality not quantity in 2012
HTC released no less than 19 Android phones in 2011, five of which landed in the final quarter of the year alone. But that rate of output is likely to slow in 2012, as HTC have announced they are to focus on a smaller range of high-quality smartphones in the coming year to reclaim their crown as Android kings.
“We had a fantastic year [in 2011], with 65 per cent growth year on year in the UK,” HTC’s UK boss Phil Roberson told Mobile Today.
“But in Q4 we delivered a lot more products than in the past. Now we want to create more of a ‘Hero’ approach. We make great phones, but it is hard to do that when the portfolio is spread too much.We have to get back to focusing on what made us great – amazing hardware and a great customer experience.
“So 2012 is about giving our customers something special. We need to make sure we do not go so far down the line that we segment our products by launching lots of different SKUs.”
Though HTC may have been championed by the Android community with the launch of the HTC Hero in 2009 or the Desire HD in 2010, they saturated the market with their products, leaving the door wide-open for Samsung to breeze in with the Galaxy S II and steal hearts and minds.
Samsung themselves release more handsets than you can shake a squat green robot at, but there is always a clearly defined top-tier handset on show, something HTC have failed to deliver over the past year. If Roberson’s claims prove true, it could be a great year to get back on the HTC bandwagon.
