HTC Sales Up 92.38% In June 2006 vs June 2005

[Ed Hansberry]

<a href="http://www.htc.com/03-press-060710.htm">http://www.htc.com/03-press-060710.htm</a><br /><br /><i>"High Tech Computer Corp. today announced that total revenues for June 2006 reached NT$ 10,060 million, up 92.38% YoY, while total revenues from January to June 2006 were NT$ 50,004 million, jump 74.26% YoY. "</i><br /><br />That sales figure translates into roughly $85.8 million dollars, in one month! 8O HTC is the company that makes most of our Pocket PCs and Smartphones, including the Treo 700w.

[Clinton Fitch]

Proof positive that someone is buying these devices.

Impressive numbers no matter what the widget! :-)

[Foo Fighter]

Impressive sales performance to be sure, but I remain less than impressed with HTC's offerings. I have yet to see a single Windows Mobile smartphone developed by HTC that compares to the superb industrial design of major wireless handset makes like Nokia, Motorola, and Samsung. The Wizards and similar models are really nothing more than your typical classic Pocket PC form factor with slide out keyboard bolted to the back. Hardly innovative, and awkward to use. Having recently just upgrade from a Treo 650 to a Nokia E61 (Blackberry clone) I can say that HTC is sub par in its product designs. The Nokia has a sleek, slim magnesium allow case, clean lines, and generally svelte form factor. It looks beautiful, works outstandingly well as phone (better than ANY smartphone I have used in fact), and yet delivers a powerful PDA-like user experience...even without a touch screen interface. By contrast HTC products are bulky, and sorely lacking in the aesthetics department. I bust a gut whenever I bump into some guy standing in line at the supermarket, thumbing around with one of these bulky Apaches and Wizards. They look ridiculous.

Even HTC's most successful design; the Treo, is becoming terribly dated. Two or three years ago the Treo form factor was state of the art. Not so today, as the Motorola Q and Nokia E61 have now set the bar in innovative smartphone design. I recently got a chance to play around with the new 700p, and was unimpressed with its pitifully minute advances. Between it and the equally unimpressive Windows Mobile devices, I decided to dump both platforms and go with Nokia's smartphone solution, and based on what I've experienced I would say it comes close to being the very best smartphone on the market today. How much longer before the Windows Mobile camp gets it right?

[Clinton Fitch]

The Wizards and similar models are really nothing more than your typical classic Pocket PC form factor with slide out keyboard bolted to the back. Hardly innovative, and awkward to use.

I'll have to respectfully disagree with you on this one Foo Fighter.

I've been using a QTEK 9100 (Wizard) over the last few months and love the device. I do not find it to be bulky or difficult to use and in fact, I've probably become far more productive on it than with previous devices. Granted, it is a bit thicker than other devices but not grossly so.

A full review will be out on my site Monday of next week.

As for innovation, I think HTC has done a good job in that regard. With the Apache and Wizard as well as other devices, they were at the time "out of the box" thinking to a degree. Can the stand an update? of course! :-)

[Foo Fighter]

I've been using a QTEK 9100 (Wizard) over the last few months and love the device. I do not find it to be bulky or difficult to use and in fact, I've probably become far more productive on it than with previous devices. Granted, it is a bit thicker than other devices but not grossly so.

Well color me unimpressed anyway. At least that is until I see something along the lines of Motorola Q-like Pocket PC phone (preferably with touch screen). And where are these 480x480 and VGA res WinMobile phones we've been promised for so long? I'm getting tired of row after row of QVGA PPC phones.

As for innovation, I think HTC has done a good job in that regard.

Where do you see innovation coming from? Nearly every one of HTC's products is identical to the next. There is precious little differentiation between the Apaches, Wizards, and now Hermes. They look alike, share the same basic form factor, and have common internals. In fact I can't understand why HTC even offers these models as separate product lines.

With the Apache and Wizard as well as other devices, they were at the time "out of the box" thinking to a degree.

"At the time" being the key phrase. Certainly the Apache was, initially, ground breaking. That ground has now been tilled, cultivated, and harvested. It's now time for reseeding with new crops. Let's see what HTC's answer to the Q and E61 will be...if there even is an answer. The very least they could do is drop these QVGA screens in place of VGA.

[Clinton Fitch]

Well color me unimpressed anyway. At least that is until I see something along the lines of Motorola Q-like Pocket PC phone (preferably with touch screen). And where are these 480x480 and VGA res WinMobile phones we've been promised for so long? I'm getting tired of row after row of QVGA PPC phones.

I agree! I'd love to see more VGA devices out there.

My comments were more along the lines of when these devices first came out. I should have been more clear in my original post.

Where do you see innovation coming from? Nearly every one of HTC's products is identical to the next. There is precious little differentiation between the Apaches, Wizards, and now Hermes. They look alike, share the same basic form factor, and have common internals. In fact I can't understand why HTC even offers these models as separate product lines.

I was referring more to the initial innovation of the devices. I agree that the latest crop is nothing but a tweak of the previous and there does need to be an update.

[alese]

[quote="Foo Fighter"]
Where do you see innovation coming from? Nearly every one of HTC's products is identical to the next. There is precious little differentiation between the Apaches, Wizards, and now Hermes. They look alike, share the same basic form factor, and have common internals. In fact I can't understand why HTC even offers these models as separate product lines.
quote]

Well, HTC sure is not the first one to "milk" successive product lines. Actually Nokia and Motorola are notorious for that (Razr and Communicator are perfect examples).
But saying that HTC is not innovating is not really fair. They did produce the first real Phone Edition and the update (HTC Himalaya) was state of the art Pocket PC for it's time with only one thing lacking (WiFi).
The HTC BlueAngel was (I think) the first WM device with slide out keyboard and first PhoneEdition with WiFi.
Then there was ultra small Magician, and Universal...
As for the future, HTC Muse looks promising with it's 4Gb Flash and UMTS.
There is only one thing - more high resolution (VGA) devices would be nice...

[Ed Hansberry]

thing - more high resolution (VGA) devices would be nice...
they need to fix battery wife first. my jasjar has good battery life but the battery alone is as heavy as my wizard.

[Foo Fighter]

they need to fix battery wife first.

I thought wife battery was illegal? :wink:

[ctmagnus]

they need to fix battery wife first.

Hmmm... Considering the proximity of the L and W keys on a standard qwerty keyboard, I think we may have an Elmer Fudd on our hands here. ;)

[Darius Wey]

they need to fix battery wife first.

Hmmm... Considering the proximity of the L and W keys on a standard qwerty keyboard, I think we may have an Elmer Fudd on our hands here. ;)

Actually, if you look closely, you'll notice that Ed's post lacked his usual sig, which means he made the post on his Pocket PC, and we all know how much Ed enjoys using Fitaly. The L and W keys are in fact next to each other. ;)

[Brad Adrian]

HTC has done a good job in some ways and could improve in others (who among us can't?). I'd chime in that, even though HTC took some really hard knocks with their early Pocket PCs, they stuck with the game longer than most and overcame their earlier problems.

[davea0511]

HTC pushes the envelope more than anyone it seems.

Sure they miss the mark usually, and there are almost always one or two things that make an otherwise perfect device just short of recommendable.

But they try, and these results are noteworthy, industry executives are you listening?

Push the envelope.

Push the envelope.