HTC Struggling Amidst Weak Smartphone Sales

HTC continues to fight an uphill battle for smartphone dominance, reporting deep losses for the first quarter amidst the rollout of its latest flagship device.

The phone maker saw losses of about $62.2 million, marking another difficult quarter for a company that can't seem to catch up to heavyweights like Apple and Samsung despite having a well-received lineup of devices.

HTC has been struggling for many quarters. Its flagship HTC One phone was intended to reboot the brand the brand, but a delayed rollout put it on the launch schedule right next to Samsung's Galaxy S4.

In October, HTC posted its first-ever quarterly loss—approximately $101 million. Rival Samsung, meanwhile, posted a record high $9.4 billion, thanks to its mobile lineup and memory chip business.

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In February, HTC cofounder Cher Wang admitted that 2013's problem was that "we only concentrated on our flagship. We missed a huge chunk of the mid-tier market," she said.

Last year, HTC also released the HTC One Mini and One Max, as well as an actual gold HTC One, and a number of mid-range devices, including the Desire 700 dual sim, Desire 601, and Desire 500 in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

Now, HTC is moving ahead with the follow-up to last year's One, the HTC One (M8). The device includes a brushed-metal body and 5-inch, 1080p Gorilla Glass LCD screen and received 4.5 out of 5 stars from PCMag and our Editors' Choice.

But like last year, the HTC One (M8) will be going up against Samsung's newest device, this time the Galaxy S5, which debuts on April 11.

The One (M8) is now available on all four major U.S. carriers; prices vary by service provider. Buyers can also pick up unlocked and developer editions, on sale for $649, while a Google Play Edition is available in the Google Play store.

For more, see PCMag's reviews of the HTC One and HTC One (M8), as well as the slideshow above.

Source:

www.pcmag.com

Posted by Editorial Team on 10:51 AM in amidst, Amidst Weak, flagship, Galaxy S4, HTC, HTC Struggling, Rival Samsung, rollout, Samsung's, Smartphone Sales

Samsung's c Will Do Your Earbuds Good

Milk -- it's not just for coffee and cereal anymore, it's now the name of yet another streaming radio service, this time from Samsung. The full name of the service is called Milk Music, and where it trumps some of the competition is by being both free to use and free of ads -- a pretty potent combination if you're going to throw your hat in the crowded streaming ring.

"Milk introduces a fresh approach to music that reflects our innovation leadership and our focus on creating best-in-class consumer experiences," said Gregory Lee, president and CEO of Samsung Telecommunications America and Samsung Electronics North America Headquarters. "We’re offering consumers amazing, rich music experiences built around what matters most to them and their lifestyle."

This is not an entirely 'from the ground-up' effort. Milk Music is powered by Slacker, which is one of the more robust and fleshed out streaming services available. As such, users gain access to a growing music catalog of 13 million songs spread across 200 genre-based and curated stations.

You have a bit of fine grain control over what types of music Milk splashes your eardrums with. Each station has three sliders you can adjust, one each for Popular,, New, and Favorite. On a broader level, you're presented with an interactive dial of music genres -- Dance, Chill, Alt/Indie, Country, and so forth -- which you can customize by creating your own preferred stations.

So, what's the catch? Unfortunately, you were right to be skeptical, at least a little bit. The catch for now is that Milk Music is exclusive to Galaxy device owners. Specifically, Milk Music works with Galaxy S4, Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note II, Galaxy Mega, and Galaxy S4 mini handsets, along with the Galaxy S5 when it hits retail.

If you're interested and have the right gear, you can download Milk Music from Google Play.

News Source: hothardware.com

Posted by Editorial Team on 9:45 AM in CEO, Earbuds Good, Galaxy S4, Headquarters, Milk Music, North America, Samsung's, Slacker, streaming, Telecommunications