We’ve been hearing a bit about Nextbit lately, and that it has this mysterious Android smartphone they are planning to unveil soon. Well today we got word that they are planning to unveil it on September 1st. Nextbit has a few former Google and HTC employees, specifically HTC’s former design head, Scott Croyle. Which means this Nextbit phone is likely to be a looker. Nextbit’s CEO, Tom Moss, stated in an interview with CNET, “It’s going to be friggin’ awesome,” in regards to their smartphone.
Nextbit’s CTO, Mike Chan stated that they are working on a phone that can adapt to you. Now we’ve seen other OEMs try this before, specifically Motorola. Who has done a great job, but it’ll be interesting to see how Nextbit can set their phone apart from the others out there.
Additionally, Nextbit is likely going to be selling direct to consumers. As they likely don’t have any carrier relations, specifically here in the US, quite yet. Which can prove to be an issue for the company. Nextbit would be joining the ever growing number of smartphones that are being sold in the US unlocked. That includes the Huawei P8 Lite, ZTE Axon, and the Motorola Moto X Pure Edition. All announced in the last few months. With carriers moving away from contracts and going for payment plans on smartphones, these unlocked smartphone models are going to become even more popular than before. Which is a great thing for struggling manufacturers who don’t have carrier relationships.
Moss, did not state what the price would be for this phone from Nextbit, but did say it would be in the “premium tier” which is around $300 to $400. That’s going to put it in direct competition with the newly announced Moto X Pure Edition and OnePlus Two, which are going to be available shortly. It’ll be interesting to see how long before the phone actually starts shipping, after it’s announced on September 1st. We’ll be covering this, so make sure you stay tuned to Android Headlines for all the details.