HTC has a “big announcement” for US customers this Wednesday; HTC One M9 release date imminent?

The HTC One M9 has officially launched in Taiwan today, but what’s the word on a release for those of us in other parts of the world? The full schedule isn’t out yet, but HTC’s Jason McKenzie says on Twitter that the company has a “big announcement” for US customers this Wednesday, and used the hashtag #HTCOneM9 to make no mistake that it’s regarding their latest smartphone.

Our immediate hope is that this announcement pertains to the US release date of said HTC One M9. Retailers have (accidentally) suggested it’ll be out as soon as March 25th so there’s a good chance we’ll be let in on official details.

While the Samsung Galaxy S6 got a great deal of the Mobile World Congress attention, the HTC One M9 is just as savory a phone and our early hands-on impressions will show you that. These will be the main contenders fighting for your wallet this Spring so it’s worth staying tuned even if your mind is already made up. See you Wednesday!

Huawei’s $180 SnapTo Android phone hits Amazon with April 9th release date

Huawei is looking to challenge the Moto Es and Moto Gs of the world with a new affordable smartphone set to launch in a couple of days. The device is modeled Huawei G620-A2, and while its listing on Amazon has its shelf name as the Expo, Huawei is planning to sell it as the Huawei SnapTo (as evidenced by a banner on the very same page).

We’re not sure why they decided to throw it onto the online retailer in such quiet fashion, but they’ve done so with 0 price tag and a spec sheet that’s not all that bad for that amount of coin. Here’s what we’re expecting:

• 5-inch HD TFT display


• Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset (Quad-Core 1.2GHz)


• 1GB of RAM and 32GB of storage


• WiFi N, Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS w/ aGPS


• 5 megapixel rear camera, 2 megapixel front camera


• 5.69 x 2.85 x 0.33 in, 5.29 oz


• 4G LTE on both AT&T and T-Mobile


• 2,200mAh battery


• Android 4.4 KitKat

The device also isn’t designed bad, to boot. It features a faux-leather textured backing for a premium look and feel despite its non-premium price tag.

It might not be the most powerful, best looking or even the most affordable smartphone on the market right now, but the Huawei SnapTo sounds like a device anyone wouldn’t mind owning for the small price you’re paying. You can pre-order the device right now and Amazon will have it shipped to you as soon as April 9th hits.

B&H lists HTC One M9 with March 25th release date, quickly removes date from website

HTC was only comfortable sharing a “mid-March” release window for the HTC One M9 during their Mobile World Congress unveiling last week, but one retailer might have shed some light on a more pointed release date ahead of time.

B&H prematurely listed the device with a March 25th sale date and a price tag (an expected price tag, mind you) of 9.99. And for what it’s worth they’ve since updated their website to remove any mentions of price or release dates.

So is March 25th the big day? It could be, but it’s important to remember that information through retailers isn’t always accurate. There are a couple of different possibilities you should consider:

• If March 25th is accurate, it might only be accurate for B&H. There’s a chance that the HTC One M9’s release date could be sooner or later elsewhere.


• Retailers often use placeholder information when they don’t have a clear idea, so the March 25th date could have been a bold shot in the dark by B&H.


• The sale date isn’t necessarily the same as the shipping date, so even if  B&H begin taking orders on March 25th that doesn’t mean the device will ship that same day.

Whatever the case may be, B&H certainly didn’t want us to know this information and they’re probably chastising the person who made the mistake of putting it out there this early. We’ll still have to keep our eye out for official release information from HTC and the world’s carriers, but this early sighting lets us know that the company’s ambitious mid-March deadline might not be hard to meet.

[via PhoneArena]

HTC plans to steal some of Samsung’s thunder, commits to April 10th US release date for HTC One M9

The HTC One M9 has already been launched in Taiwan, but the company has been a bit hushy about release dates for other regions. Thankfully the questions are over for those of us in the United States: the HTC One M9 will be available starting April 10th (which coincidentally happens to be the day Samsung is launching the Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge).

That news was revealed during a Q&A session with HTC’s Jason McKenzie this morning as he took questions regarding the company’s groundbreaking new “Uh-Oh Protection” plan.

Details are scarce, but McKenzie was clear in saying that availability would only “start” April 10th. Whether that be at retail or through one or more carriers at the same time is yet to be determined, but it’s important to know that they’re not promising every carrier and store will have it on that day.

What he did promise is that the phone will eventually make its way to all major carriers in the United States, which we identify to be Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and US Cellular.

Other interesting notes from the Q&A:

• Uh-Oh Protection is available no matter which carrier or retailer you buy your device from


• Phones with root or custom ROMs are eligible to be replaced under Uh-Oh Protection


• Uh-Oh Protection does not cover lost or stolen devices


• The 0 credit to buy the next HTC One you get for going 12 months without an accident is not dependent on trading your HTC One M9 in — you can keep your old phone and still use your credit for a new one (or trade the phone in and stack the credit on top of that)


• Uh-Oh Protection will be available for buyers of the HTC One M8, but only if you buy your HTC One M8 after the HTC One M9 has launched.

Let us know if you’ll be planning to pick one up once they finally hit store shelves.

HTC One M9’s first official release date is March 16th

HTC’s mid-March release window for the HTC One M9 is about as accurate as you can get. The company has just announced the first official availability date for the device. It’ll go on sale beginning March 16th in their home turf of Taiwan in conjunction with 5 of the nation’s largest carriers.

According to local press, HTC held the initial launch in Taiwan so as to instill some Taiwanese pride among the hometown people excited to buy their phone. They drove that point home with traditional festivities such as drum performances and a performance by a local orchestra. This is in contrast to last year’s strategy of making United States’ Verizon Wireless the very first carrier to call dibs on the HTC One M8.

HTC mentioned that while the M9’s officially recognized launch date is March 16th, it wouldn’t start showing up on store shelves of local carriers until March 23rd. Whether an international or global launch will happen at that point remains to be seen (B&H once let loose a March 25th date for those of us in the States), but if the phone is primed for one market then it should be good to go in many more.

We’ll try to get a more pointed release date as it pertains to everyone not in Taiwan, so sit tight (unless, of course, you’ll be fortunate enough to be in the nation next week and buy one for yourself). In the meantime get a good look at what to expect from our hands-on time with the device from Mobile World Congress last week.

[via Digitimes]

Mobile Roar 93: Frozen phones, LG G4 launch date, Asus Zenfone 2, and more!

It’s always a good episode when something crazy happens to Chris. This week he accidentally left his DROID Turbo in the freezer overnight. We also discuss our first phones and something eerily familiar about the Samsung Captivate. Other topics include the ASUS ZenFone 2, LG G4 launch date, Mad Men finale, The Witcher 3, and much more! Thanks for watching/listening!

Big News

• The Samsung Captive and Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge look a lot alike


• Chris left his DROID Turbo in the freezer

Quick Hits

• Android Phone Rankings


• YotaPhone 2 is now available via Indiegogo


• ASUS Zenfone 2


• LG G4 may launch early June


• Spotify update will sync music to your running; videos and podcasts


• LG returns to Windows Phone with LG Lancet for Verizon

Wins/Fails

• Joe: Mad Men / Korea clock on G4


• Chris:  Google Photos IO debut / Android Wear 5.1.1 rollout


• Ashley: The Witcher 3 /

App Picks

• Joe: Microsoft Hyperlapse


• Chris: Notifidgets


• Ashley: Knights of Pen and Paper 2

Follow Us

• Joe Fedewa (@tallshmo)


• Chris Chavez (@gamercore)


• Ashley King (@overlordror)


• @mobileroarcast

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OnePlus 2 reveal date announced, launch event will be streamed in VR

We were expecting OnePlus to unveil another hardware component of the upcoming OnePlus 2 today but instead, the company revealed something else. Broadcasted onto (where else) but their forum and usual social media channels, OnePlus announced the reveal date for the OnePlus 2. The phone will officially be unveiled on Monday, July 27th at 7PM PT.

Unlike your normal product launch — which typically only live streams an event in regular ‘ol 2D — OnePlus will actually broadcast the show in 360-degree virtual reality. Because OnePlus knows not everyone owns a VR headset (I recently received my unit from Adult Swim’s free giveaway), they decided to build their own Google Cardboard unit only with a few improvements. It’s not available quite yet, but OnePlus tells us to check back where you’ll soon be able to order one (apparently free of charge?). You can find it here.

We’re sure to hear a lot more from OnePlus as the days progress, so stay tuned.

[OnePlus]