RIP HTC

HTC finally threw in the towel, and it's about time.

I can't exactly recall how many HTC phones I've owned. A lot. They include but not limited to Magic, Hero, Legend, One XL, One (M7) and One M9. So my love-and-hate affair with HTC went way back, because HTC Magic was released in 2009, with a 3.2 inch display and a 3MP camera.

When I think of HTC, I always go back to the four Ps in marketing 101. Product, Price, Place and Promotion. HTC made good products, but in my opinion failed miserably in all the three other areas. HTC's competitors whipped HTC from all angles -- with lower prices (chiefly Chinese handset makers), stronger specs (Samsung), faster adoption of technological advancement (HTC 2017 flagship still doesn't have dual cameras), and overwhelming marketing budgets HTC simply can't match. So basically HTC is stuck between a rock and a hard place, beaten on specs at the top-end and on price in the budget range.

A few lessons from HTC. First, it takes only a few years for a hot smartphone brand to turn into a dinosaur. Two, the rise of Chinese smartphone makers, led by Huawei, is as big a factor in HTC's demise as HTC's own incompetence.

The three phones I've used since HTC One M9 were Nexus 6P, Huawei P9 and Huawei Mate 9. In a way, this is perhaps symbolic of the respective rise and fall of economic might in the different sides of Taiwan Strait.

Adios, HTC!!!