Google released the Samsung Galaxy S4 special edition this year on Google I/O. The special edition was nothing different on a hardware standpoint but had a major difference than the regular standard Samsung Galaxy S4.
It is deemed to have the Nexus experience i.e. Stock Android experience. Yes, all the Samsung software fluff you get with the TouchWiz UI can be skipped and what you get is the royal pure Android experience.
No one was disappointed with this announcement, rather everybody ( even the ones who hated S4 ) like S4 much more than before.
But with this release came the major question, what happens with HTC? HTC was the first company to launch the Nexus device. The one Nexus device which was loved and used by millions for years. HTC’s Nexus device was the most stable device for few years. Despite all the hardware advancements post its launch and various new devices equipped with better hardware were launched. HTC Nexus was still an Android lover/user’s favorite or the best Android device.
So the obvious question was will HTC make their HTC One the Nexus device? With only two devices out in market right now which are deemed to be best Android smartphones right now, S4 and HTC One are the only ones which people like the most. It would be a logical move for HTC to give the pure Android experience a.k.a. Nexus experience in their HTC One to all the HTC & Nexus fans.
Making everyone happy and answering the major question, HTC revealed a new version of HTC One that runs an untouched, stock version of Google’s Android Operating system.
The device will be unlocked and run on all carriers with the support of high-speed LTE on available networks. HTC has provided an easy to read and understand spec sheet with all the 3 different HTC One versions.
Memory 32GB 64GB 32GB
Color
Unlockable Bootloader
Yes *
Yes**
Yes***
SIM Unlocked
Bands
GSM/GPRS/EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
LTE: 700/850/AWS/1900 MHz (US)
Operating System HTC Sense HTC Sense Android 4.2.2
Price $599 $649 $599
Availability Now on HTC.com Now on HTC.com June 26th via Google Play
This release was actually teased by a Developer Evangelist at HTC at the time of Google I/O
So you can pay $649 for a piece of plastic running stock or… You can wait
#IO13 — Leigh (@jetleigh) May 15, 2013
Benefits of running stock version of Android
- Quick updates. As soon as an Android update is released, you do not have to wait for the manufacturer’s Android update. You can quickly do a OTA and get the latest update. Basically, Google handles the update.
- Lesser known bugs.
- No superficial UI running on top of your OS, makes your device run fast and more effective.
- No app issues. All apps run smoothly as they are purely originally made to run on stock Android. No UI tweak or glitch to crash it.
- Pure Nexus Experience. If you loved Google Nexus devices in past, you’ll love this one too.
- Unlocked device, no more carrier restrictions on your device.
- Skip all the bloatware installed by the manufacturer, carrier or UI.
- Having no UI essentially runs your App at full potential and increases your battery life.
via HTC Blog
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