Oh, HTC. I've written a whole article about HTC's failing revenue and business practices, and with the release of their next flagship, it's time to take another look. In my last post about HTC, I talked about various things that HTC needs to address if they want to stay competitive in the smartphone industry. Now I'm going to see if they did address these issues with the HTC 10.

Firstly, I said HTC should release a phone like the leaked (fake) version of the HTC One M9. What I meant by that wasn't an exact copy of that design, rather just something different. I think HTC has succeeded in this part. I absolutely love the chamfered edges of the HTC 10. The 10 keeps many of the elements that made the One line popular, namely an all-metal unibody, while at the same time changing up the design to look more modern. A definite win for HTC.

Secondly, I urged HTC to create a better skin that doesn't exploit its customers for advertising money. I think, again, they succeeded with the HTC 10. The HTC 10's UI is very minimal, staying fairly close to stock Android. HTC did something I wish all manufacturers would do, (even Google) they worked with Google to remove duplicates of stock apps with the same functionality. For example, we don't want three different web browsers, personal assistants, health apps, etc. all on the same device when we first get it. It wastes space and is confusing to the user. HTC has done a great job at showing restraint with Android, I approve.

Lastly, I asked that HTC release their next flagship for an affordable price. And while we may still see that this year if HTC does indeed make the next Nexus, it's not quite the same as making your flagship affordable. The HTC 10 definitely fails in this department. It's $699, which isn't that bad for a smartphone, but still definitely not affordable. HTC seems to think it can compete with Samsung on an even playing field still, but that isn't true. HTC's reputation has gone down significantly in just a few years, they can't just release their flagship for the same price as Samsung and expect to get as good of sales.

The HTC 10 looks to be one of the best phones of 2016 so far. If nothing else, it is a solid software package in a solid hardware package. Whether that's enough to get HTC back on its feet, only time will tell.

Source: Android Authority, Verge

Virtual reality has been in the news for the past few years for its major advancements, but we aren't even on the brink yet. Google, Microsoft, HTC, Valve, Oculus, and more are all into the VR game. This amount of competition hasn't been as strong for any individual field in years.

Oculus made major headlines with the Oculus Rift, marketed as the first major VR headset for the masses. Facebook has since taken over Oculus, which caused quite a lot of backlash. While it still isn't completely ready for everyone to use, everyone is certainly impressed by it. Following suit comes everyone else. Google Glass was a big thing for about a year before it regressed back into the experimental labs of Google, but while it was popular everyone was imagining what could be possible with VR in the near future.

Microsoft's HoloLens made one of the coolest tech demos in history last year by providing a VR headset that merges VR and reality. This isn't simply viewing a fake world through a screen, this creates objects on top of the real world and allows you to interact with them. Imagine a fake Minecraft world on your coffee table. That's what HoloLens is aiming to do.

Google isn't done with VR simply because they're taking a break from Glass. This month they officially announced their virtual reality division, meaning they have a team of VR experts working on it all the time now. Google's Cardboard is probably one of the more interesting VR concepts. It isn't anything fancy, but that's the point. If you're looking for a good VR experience without shelling out hundreds of dollars, Cardboard has you covered. I got a free Google Cardboard simply by following Google's Twitter. You place your phone in the headset and install Cardboard-compatible apps. They aren't fancy, but they give you a feel for VR if you've never done it before. As my dad said, "I've never seen anything like this before. Wow."

HTC Vive is another attempt at VR, focusing on gaming. Vive allows you to walk around the room and explore your surroundings while warning you of any nearby obstacles. Vive partnered with Valve, a major game creator, in order to ensure their focus on gamers.

Lastly, there's the mysterious Magic Leap. Google invested just under a billion dollars in the startup last year, and since then there hasn't been much talk. The company is very secretive, not even releasing a look at their product. The most we have are renders of what the view behind it might look like, and one small tech demo.

With so much competition from various companies, from Facebook to HTC, VR is going to explode in the next decade. I can't even imagine all the things possible with it.

HTC's sales have taken a nosedive, and for good reason. HTC revolutionized what we can call a premium smartphone with the introduction of the all-metal HTC One M7 back in 2013. Unfortunately since then HTC has done everything but revolutionize. "If it ain't broken, don't fix it." is HTC's motto. The HTC One M8 and M9 have both been mild upgrades, with similar designs. Before the M9's release, leaked renders showed an amazing design upgrade. Everyone, myself included, was excited for this. Unfortunately it was dead wrong, the M9 ending up barely different aesthetically to the M8. I believe their lack of sales are due to an unwillingness to adapt to the changing smartphone market, similar to BlackBerry back in the day.

Leaked HTC One M9 renders which were dead wrong.

When HTC does choose to make some changes, they aren't good ones. HTC's flagships have been criticized for using experimental "ultrapixel" technology, which in the end delivered worse photos than traditional counterparts. Sense, HTC's skin over Android, has been updated with BlinkFeed, a sorry excuse for a news source plastered over your home screen. BlinkFeed even includes advertisements, which is ridiculous. What other trustworthy smartphone manufacturer has advertisements enabled by default on the homescreen?

The real HTC One M9.

Ultimately, HTC has to release something like the leaked M9 to gain back any footing in the smartphone industry that they've lost. They need to create a better interface which doesn't revolve around exploiting their customers for advertising, or better yet, adopt a stock-like feel like what Motorola has done. If HTC is really serious about gaining traction, they'll release a phone like this for a competitive price around the cost of a Huawei Nexus 6P. ($499) Otherwise, I just can't see HTC climbing its way back to the top.

Sources: Ars Technica, HTC