HTC announced its intention to jump into the wearables space earlier this year with a new partnership with Under Armour and the announcement of the HTC Grip (pictured above) at Mobile World Congress. But before it shipped, the company decided to instead focus on an “entire product portfolio for health and fitness” that would launch later this year. The holiday shopping season is now nearly upon us and no launch details have yet to emerge. In a statement to Phandroid, HTC has now confirmed that the launch of this line of HTC wearables has slipped into 2016.
As we continue to develop the Connected Fitness platform and elevate our product offerings, Under Armour and HTC have decided to launch a fully integrated digital ecosystem of products early next year. This global launch will provide the tools needed to help athletes of all levels track, manage and improve their health and fitness. Our teams have done a remarkable job bringing these products to life and we’re excited to share them with the public soon.
The fact that the Connected Fitness platform is still in development suggests that HTC realized once more that its products were not ready for prime time. Less clear is whether the delays are due to hardware or software or even both.
No mention of the HTC Grip is made in this latest statement. The company instead promises “a fully integrated digital ecosystem of products.” It may well include a redesigned HTC Grip but it should not be the only HTC wearable that the company unveils.
Here’s hoping that HTC is able to meet its “early next year” timelines. If so, announcements could be made as early as CES 2016 in January or perhaps at MWC 2016 in March.
Source : Phandroid