HTC to intro first Android 6.0 phone Oct. 20 in virtual event
Invitations to the online event appeared minutes after Google wrapped up its Nexus launch.
Minutes after Google debuted its two new Nexus phones, HTC issued an invitation of its own.
The sparsely worded email announced that the phone maker will unveil its first HTC One handset running Google's Android 6.0 Marshmallow software on October 20.
Rather than host a live show with an opportunity for hands-on time at the same venue, HTC is opting for a completely digital reveal. This could be a cost-saving move to ease the blow of HTC's plummeting revenue, which dropped by half in the second quarter compared with a year earlier.
Rumors agree that the device could be called the HTC One A9, though specific hardware details vary from a raging 10-core chipset to a more mild, midrange set of features.
Either way, HTC's plan to debut a preholiday phone of its own is a necessary move for it to continue to compete with strong, new competitor devices since its April release of the One M9 flagship -- including the just-announced Huawei-made Nexus 6P , Motorola Moto X Pure and Play , Sony Xperia Z5 family , Samsung Galaxy Note 5 and S6 Edge+ , OnePlus 2 and of course, the twin leviathans that are the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus .
Whatever the case, we'll hopefully still get a chance to see the new phone soon after the launch.
The event takes place Tuesday, October 20 at 9 a.m. in San Francisco, 12 p.m. in New York, 5 p.m. in London, 9:30 p.m. in New Delhi and midnight in Taipei.