Let’s face it: HTC may have its hopes pinned on its not-so-secretive M7 smartphone, but sooner or later the company is going to have to drop the codename and let it fly under another banner. As it turns out, that new name may be more familiar than expected — prolific leaker EvLeaks noted on Twitter just a little while ago that it would debut simply as the HTC One later this month.
I say “may,” of course, because ersatz leaks are just par for the course this close to an HTC unveiling. Then again, the Taiwanese company isn’t exactly great at keeping these sorts of things under wraps. If you’ll recall, the revelation of the original One series devices was spoiled just about this time last year, well ahead of HTC’s big Barcelona press conference at Mobile World Congress. HTC never puts much effort into debunking these sorts of claims (unlike, say, Samsung) so you can expect the company to remain stoic on the matter, but EvLeaks’ generally strong track record lends this rumor a fair amount of credence.
Granted, the move is a pretty clever one if true — HTC has spent the last year establishing the One series moniker as one worth paying attention to, and giving it up after making as much headway as it has would just be silly. Plus, simply calling its new flagship The One lends the device a certain cachet — it would be the culmination of the all the prowess expertise that went into crafting the already-impressive One series.
Oh, and in case you needed a little more to chew on, AndroidCentral points out that HTC CEO Peter Chou attempted to whip his employees into a frenzy at a recent year-end party by having them repeatedly chant “HTC,” “M7,” and yes, “HTC One.” Was it an awkwardly enthusiastic bonding exercise, or something more telling? Either way, the answer should be revealed very shortly.