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HTC reaffirms ‘commitment’ to Microsoft’s Windows Phone platform

By: , IntoMobile
Sunday, February 21st, 2010 at 6:54 AM

HTC has seemingly fallen in love with Google’s Android mobile operating system – they’ve been launching Android phones left and right, as of late – but the company that got its start building smartphones powered by Microsoft’s Windows Mobile platform hasn’t forgotten its roots. At Mobile World Congress, HTC CEO Peter Chou reiterated his company’s commitment to all things Windows Phone. That’s good news for Windows Phone fans, especially considering the impressive new Windows Phone 7 Series user interface that Microsoft demonstrated at Mobile World Congress.

“Our commitment to Microsoft has never changed,” said HTC Chief Peter Chou, adding that HTC is “very committed to Android as well. We are very long-term committed to those two.” It’s clear that HTC is keeping their options open (and why shouldn’t they – Android is gaining steam and Windows Phone has proven that Microsoft still has a future in the smartphone space).

Last week, HTC unveiled three new phones in Barcelona, two of which were Android phones. The single Windows Mobile device that was announced is a miniaturized version of HTC’s HTC HD2, aptly called the HTC HD Mini. The bite-sized Windows Phone will run on Windows Mobile OS 6.5.3, which basically represents the last stop on the upgrade roadmap for “Windows Mobile.” The good news for Windows Mobile fans is that, going forward, HTC will apparently make room for Windows Phone 7 Series handsets in their increasingly Android-heavy smartphone lineup. HTC’s commitment to Windows Phone should also be good news to Microsoft, as it will guarantee Microsoft a sizable partner willing to pay licensing fees to use the Windows Phone platform.

We had a chance to play around with a preview of Windows Phone 7 Series, and we have to give Microsoft due credit for creating a truly innovative UI that provides an intuitive user experience. Check out the video here and let us know what you think!

[Via: Reuters]

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About The Author

Will Park

Will hails from The City of Angels - Los Angeles, California. He spends his time playing with his numerous gadgets and looking forward to seeing what future holds for mobile technology. An avid promoter of a fully "digital" life, he promotes the widespread adoption of truly mobile, paper-less living. He dreams of the day when he can go completely digital. No more snail mail, paper receipts, bound books, notepads/spiral notebooks, credit cards, hard currency. He's a digital warrior - fighting for the converged life. He is an idealist and a realist - he has a perfect view of what the world should be but knows that the world is not perfect. Can we ever hope to see Will's dream become reality? We'll see...

  • Katie Mansfield

    Well, HTC would say it’s committed, considering it still has a number of Windows Phones in the market.

    But a closer examination reveals a much greater commitment to Android than Microsoft’s Windows Phon. As the article says, Windows Phone Classic 6.5.3 “represents the last stop on the upgrade roadmap for “Windows Mobile.”

    Why would anyone buy a Windows Phone classic when it is the last stop in the life of an OS? These phones are going to be pretty hard to sell.

    How many Series 7 phones will HTC release? I see only one on their line-up. That looks like they are dipping their toes in to test the water, rather than committing to a full line-up of Series 7 phones.

    On the other hand, most of HTC’s other smartphones will be running the Android platform.