HTC has confirmed that its entry level Windows Phone 8S handset will not be sold in the US. Instead, HTC will focus its marketing efforts here on my preferred device, the Windows Phone 8X.
The news comes courtesy of Engadget, which received the following quote from HTC:
“The Windows Phone 8X by HTC is our signature Windows Phone available at AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless in the U.S. With our focus on the Windows Phone 8X by HTC, the Windows Phone 8S is not currently planned for distribution in the US market.”
I agree with this decision, but the 8S, like Nokia’s Lumia 820 (and related 8xx handsets) was a surprisingly nice device. In fact, I found myself preferring the specs of the high-end 8X and Lumia 920, respectively, but somewhat preferring the look and feel of the lower-end 8S and 820 when I previewed all these devices.
I wrote about my first impressions of the HTC 8S in Windows Phone 8: HTC Windows Phone 8X and 8S Preview after having had attended the HTC launch event for the products. HTC said at the time that the 8S was “dipped” in color, which creates that nice effect where the bottom quarter of the phone features a pretty color stripe:
But like the Nokia Lumia 820, the 8S came up a bit short in the specs department with a low-res 4 mpx back camera, but no front-facing camera or NFC. Ah well.