htc
[Rumor] HTC acquiring MOG could spell free streaming
When there was mention about a HTC streaming music streaming last time, the only smidgen said that HTC would launch a competitor to Spotify and leverage Beats CEO, Jimmy Iovine was to secure contracts with different high profile music labels to get the music streaming ball rolling. Today rumors are going round stating that HTC either or will soon have acquired MOG, a pioneer in the music streaming service when it was first founded in 2005.
While MOG has never been a massive player in the streaming music side of things, it would be safe to assume that if the rumor turns out to be true, HTC would incorporate MOB into the Beats brand to create a modified streaming service which might deliver a similar subscription as that of the deal between Dropbox and HTC stating that HTC One customers will get 25GB of online storage.
For those who are unfamiliar with MOG, it is a subscription based music streaming facility with 14 million songs in its database. MOG subscribers can stream music via a browser or a dedicated app for either Android or iOS. MOG also provides the facility to create customized artist based playlists (Pandora offers something similar) with a control bar that toggles the balance of music selection between “Artist Only” and “Similar Artist”. Do you think that this is a step in the right direction for HTC and how viable a rumor is this to you?
What is the world’s best kept secret? I suppose that would be a subjective question, with a myriad of answers for your picking if you were to take into consideration the different industries and niches, but where smartphones are concerned, especially with the HTC banner involved, then it would be the HTC One X9 being the next handset from the company. A set of photos of the alleged device has surfaced, and in these photos, it has more or less confirmed the overall design of the device – including its SIM card slot, power and volume button locations.
Other rumored hardware specifications include a 5.5” Full HD display, a MediaTek MT6795 SoC, either 2GB or 3GB of RAM, 16GB of internal memory, a 3,000mAh battery, a 13MP shooter at the back with OIS, and an UltraPixel front camera. All that we have to do now is to sit tight and wait for an official announcement concerning the hardware, and it is good to go.
Now here is a new handset (in a sense) that hails from the folks over at HTC, although it does not really pay homage to HTC’s motto of “Here’s To Change”. Apparently, the HTC One E9s Dual SIM arrived on the HTC India website with nary an official announcement, and do not be fooled by its name since it is far less an improvement over the HTC One E9 as opposed to the HTC Desire 820, taking into consideration this device is thicker, heavier, has a slower chipset, a smaller battery, and a lower resolution 720p display as opposed to the Full HD display on the HTC One E9.
Other hardware specifications of the HTC One E9s Dual SIM include 16GB of internal memory, a 13MP shooter at the back, a 4MP camera in front, 2GB RAM, LTE connectivity and as mentioned earlier, Dual SIM capability. Oh yes, throw in stereo speakers and Dolby audio, and you’ve got a “new” model.
We do know that the HTC One A9 is well on its way, but as to exactly when will it roll out to the masses? We do not really know, but what we do know is this – there will be an October 20th event that will be held by HTC, and chances are pretty high that will be the date on which HTC rolls out their new HTC One handset. Right here, right now, we will just have to make do with a bunch of leaked HTC One A9 photos, where this smartphone does seem to resemble an iPhone 6 where its design and form factor are concerned.
Of course, there is also a quick look at HTC’s very own Sense UI that will run on top of the Android operating system, in addition to rounded sides of an aluminum unibody and a microUSB 2.0 port – I guess that rules out the Type-C port that other handset manufacturers are starting to incorporate. Other than that, it looks like a loudspeaker resides on the bottom, with a lack of stereo speakers on the front. Check out the photo gallery after the jump.