The appearance of a render of the HTC M8 ‘Prime’ certainly lit a fire under rumours that HTC were working on a more premium version of their already quite high-end 2014 flagship, the HTC One M8. A new rumour that has surfaced today originating from 9to5Google says that HTC is working on not a single premium ‘Prime’ phone, but two, a ‘Plus’ and an ‘Advance.
The existence of two phone models from rival manufacturers with premium features and a ‘Prime’ model name, was always suspicious, so a ‘Plus’ and ‘Advance’ seems more in-line with reality.
The ‘Plus’ model will be the more premium version of the two phones and will retain the metal body of the One M8, but with one important addition which has been creeping into Smartphones over the last couple of years – water resistance. The name for this phone will apparently be the HTC One Plus, making for a naming convention in the series that apparently nightmares are made of.
While the ‘Plus’ will be the premium version, the ‘Advance’ on the other hand, will be a plastic version, aimed at a lower price point and a different market which 9to5Google speculate will be aimed at Asian Markets.
Rumour suggests that a 2K (2560×1440) display will be the centrepiece of the both phones, and a Snapdragon 805 processor and 3GB of RAM is also being talked about. The much talked about ‘Duo-Camera’ will be MIA in both the Plus and the Advance, with HTC apparently including a 13MP camera, much the same as was included in the recently announced HTC One Mini 2.
When we spoke to HTC at the launch of the HTC One M8 in Australia, we discussed them releasing a waterproof version of the phone. A HTC rep did say that they would look at it, but when they did release a waterproof phone, it would be ‘done differently’. The quote was in reference to the Sony Xperia phones which have been seen as the leaders in the premium waterproof smartphone stakes, so what HTC will do differently with the ‘Plus’ and the ‘Advance’ we’ll have to wait and see.
Launch dates for the phones is rumoured to be aimed at around August or Early September, but no pricing has been spoken about at this time. Whether all these rumours surrounding ‘Prime’, ‘Advance’ or ‘Plus’ models are true or not remains to be seen, but hopefully we should find out soon.
