HTC’s newest flagship phone, the HTC 10, is by all accounts a pretty great flagship device. Like others in its field, it sports a speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chip, a 2560 x 1440 screen, a head-turning design, and decent battery life, all running the latest available version of Android. For whatever reason, be it HTC’s lack of marketing, the massive success of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, or just a lack of zeal for the HTC name these days, it hasn’t sold all that well. Offered up on all major carriers except AT&T, as well as unlocked on HTC’s website, the HTC 10 had every chance to do well, and consumers simply haven’t responded in the way that carriers and HTC would prefer.
The HTC 10’s troubles were compounded last month when it mysteriously vanished from T-Mobile’s online listings for a while, reportedly the victim of some sort of system glitch. It eventually came back, but now it’s gone again. This time, however, according to various sources, it’s gone for good. This leaves hopeful HTC 10 buyers to either buy it directly from HTC, or go through Verizon or Sprint, and the HTC Desire 530 as the only HTC phone officially left on T-Mobile. Those on T-Mobile who really want to finance one can do so through PayPal Credit on HTC’s website, or hunt one down in physical T-Mobile stores. With the phone’s low demand, supplies may take a while to run thin, but they won’t be replenished.
Although HTC has the deal to produce this year’s Nexus phones, the fact that their latest flagship got the boot from one of the only 3 major carriers to pick it up in less time than the BlackBerry Priv, which seemed to make its exit from T-Mobile in record time, is more than a little concerning for their mobile business. Hopefully, their contribution to the Nexus program this year will be a stellar followup to the much loved Nexus One that they were responsible for, and bring their name back to good graces in the mobile space. Otherwise, HTC will have to rely on their bet on VR that they made with the Vive to keep them afloat.