According to Italian site SoloPalmari.com, HTC is set to unveil a new mobile phone powered by its own proprietary operating system. The device will not be a smartphone but a cheaper and lower-end device. It could launch as early as September.
According to the report, the device will be similar to the HTC Touch/HTC Viva and will come with a touchscreen display. The operating system, developed by HTC, would feature elements of both the TouchFLO 3D and Sense user interfaces. Little else is known about the device at this point.
To date, HTC has focused primarily on the Windows Mobile platform but has more recently started to offer devices powered by Google Android. A new push into so-called feature phones which come with less functionality than smartphones would allow HTC to expand into a new market segment. While smartphones remain a high growth area, the feature phone market remains a much larger market. The move would allow HTC to grow its overall mobile phone market share and unit shipments.
Note: The ‘More information’link is in Italian. [Google translation]