Asus to go toe to toe with HTC in 2009 Android smartphone race
The features and exact release date of the first Android-powered Asus smartphone could be anyone’s guess for now, but one thing’s for sure: it is in the works. With their roughly 800-person R&D staff, Asus aims to hit the smartphone scene next year with at least Android, and also Windows Mobile.
And if a recent report citing industry sources in Taiwan holds true, we may as well expect a battle royale between Asus and HTC next year, in the realm of consumer and business smartphones, of course.
It is said the Asus is currently beefing up its R&D in order to offer up to 10 new models in 2009, “almost all supporting 3G and a touch user interface.” And all this is done to make rival smartphone maker HTC feel small.
Asus’ estimated total shipment volumes for handsets in 2008 didn’t even manage to hit half a million, but who knows? With the right mix of a good design, user experience, and smartphone platform (with either the Android OS or Windows Mobile, then), Asus could potentially dream of making sales like the iPhone’s. Or the T-Mobile G1’s, at least. We should know for sure in the coming months. Either way, it’s good for the consumer.
Via DigiTimes
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