HTC’s next flagship won’t be called the HTC 11

If you’re waiting for the HTC 11 you might be waiting a long, long time, at least for a phone with that name, as while a new HTC flagship is likely to arrive this year – perhaps as soon as MWC 2017 – it apparently won’t be called the HTC 11.

That naming news comes straight from HTC’s President of Smartphone and Connected Devices Business, Chialin Chang, in conversation with Engadget, so it’s all but confirmed.

He wouldn’t be drawn on what the phone will be called instead, though we have seen evidence of a Vive-branded handset, so perhaps that will be the HTC 11’s final form.

Quality over quantity

Chang was more forthcoming in other areas though, revealing that HTC will only release around 6-7 smartphones this year, down from around double that in 2016.

The just announced HTC U Ultra and HTC U Play are included in that figure, so we’ll probably only see a handful more over the year, of which some will apparently be affordable handsets in the Desire range.

It’s a decision that’s apparently been made so the company can focus on the core features and unique selling points of its phones, in order to help them stand out from the competition, rather than launching a sea of similar handsets and hoping for the best.

In the case of the new U range that selling point is the company’s Sense Companion assistant. For the HTC 11 – or whatever it ends up being called – we’re not clear on what the focus will be, beyond flagship specs, but if it does have HTC Vive branding then it might be built for VR.

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