An open letter to HTC

brokenthru

So this is my first post ever on here but I've been on the site before. Lots of really good info here so, much respect .

I initially looked up a way to e-mail HTC directly but I only came across Customer Support. I have an urge to share this..

So my first introduction to Android was through a Galaxy S2 and then eventually got myself an S3. Long story short, the S3 was so terrible that I swore off Samsung forever and Korean brands as a whole (haven't had the best experience with Korean stuff in general I see their stuff as Japanese tech with Chinese QA)..

Then I got myself an M9 after some research and absolutely loved everything about it. I had the gold M9 and I sometimes just looked at the phone when it was sitting somewhere and admire how gorgeous it looked and how it had withstood so many falls, but still worked perfectly despite cosmetic damage and still works to this day. I LOVED the audio on it (why I bought it really) and it was able to drive my DT770 250s to a good volume and with Viper4Android the phone blew me the eff away. I loved that phone and still do..

So I recently upgraded to a U11 and I can see where HTC is falling short and it hurts me as a fan of theirs to see them go through this for what I think is nothing but a result of not listening to one's core customer base and expanding outwards organically.

What I mean is, the U11 honestly is nowhere close to the M9 in terms of how good it looks, and it's not even close in terms of audio performance both through headphones as well as the speakers. The quality itself is not bad at all, but it lacks the oomph. The decision to join the bandwagon with abandoning 3.5mm and replacing it with a bandaid solution like making the phone not really capable of driving any proper headphones through the USB dongle and with no 3.5mm jack it was a complete downgrade.

The speakers? Lol the speakers on my M9 make people actually check the phone out when it's playing something. It's that good. The U11 speaker literally sounds like a cheap tinny speaker.

From what I've seen nothing's changed with the U12 in that respect.

My point is, why are you guys trying to run away from all the things that made your company do so well and then keep shooting yourself in the foot by going further and further away from what the people who once made you so successful, want?

If you stick to coming up with developing good, unique looking phones that pack a punch in terms of hardware, with proper high end hardware, an excellent screen, camera (HTC cameras are garbage IMHO, and I love them) and above all, above and beyond audio performance both through headphones and speakers. Bring the 3.5mm jack back. More choice for consumers = more money, simple economics.

Get yourself a U12 successor like that and price it less than an equivalent Samsung/LG phone and you have yourself a real winner.

You actually have the ability to be a serious player in the high end smartphone arena, but that comes from listening to your core customer base who have been screaming at the top of their lungs to just keep improving on what the M7 or maybe the HTC One introduced. That's literally all that's needed, while adapting to modern tech of course..

I just don't want you guys to go out of the high end smartphone market because honestly I love your phones. In terms of quality for money, you cannot be beat in my experience and the closest contenders are not even close.

Improve your marketing as well. Properly targeted marketing on places with power users like this forum for example, would do wonders for sales.

Fellow HTC loyalists, feel free to share.

Cheers..

simoncdale

Android pioneer HTC stages China retreat

brokenthru

I honestly think HTC needs to target providers and convince them to start offering their phones again. I remember back in the day when this was common, the HTC phones seemed to be targeted to those people who were the type to appreciate audio quality and unique looking phones above all else, and since the phones delivered exactly that, it made sense for providers to offer HTC phones as there was and still is a significant market for it.

What happened was that HTC let LG take that spot from the V10 onwards.

Thing is since LG phones are very well known for straight up garbage quality control, HTC can still come back and easily take back the spot if they just did what they were doing. Hell, LG just did what HTC was supposed to have done and it worked, so why not do it for yourself?

mikeysthoughts

I had an M7 from new for years (still have it as a backup phone). It's bulletproof and the battery still manages a full day. Loved the speakers.

My next purchase was my current HTC10. 2 1/2 years on I'm still happy with it. I wanted to stick with HTC as the build quality and Sense UI are brilliant. I chose the 10 over-the later models because it had a decent DAC and a headphone jack.

Sadly these things seem to have been 'surpassed'. I agree with you OP.

Smudger1

I have fond memories of the (original) HTC Desire and the Sense UI, I remember having to have a 'gold' SD card to do the update to Froyo. Moved to a Sensation after that but the magic was gone. The Sensation was a good phone but didn't really have the Wow that the Desire had.

mikeysthoughts

Ah, you've just reminded me of my first smartphone, the Desire HD. What a phone.

BM08

I had a HTC desire, it was rubbish! Can’t think of one thing I liked about it.  

Smudger1

Was it this one?

                                                                                                                                               
That's the one I had, the original and best...