HTC continues to lose high-level staff as its North American team gradually peels away the struggling smartphone company, with industry talk suggesting Facebook’s Home launch strategy actually ended up undermining rather than supporting the firm. Chief Product Officer Kouki Kodera, in charge of HTC’s product strategy, left the firm last week according to The Verge‘s
When Facebook and HTC announced the HTC First, it was expected to become the first Android smartphone to have Facebook Home installed onto it, making its customers among the first to check out Facebook’s experimental application. Soon after its official launch, […]
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HTC’s Facebook Home-laden First smartphone may only have debuted on AT&T last month, but it appears that the device may be a dud as far as consumers are concerned. According to a report from BGR’s Zach Epstein, sales of the HTC First smartphone have been so disappointing that AT&T will soon be dropping the device from its lineup completely and shipping all unsold inventory back to HTC.
If this report holds true (representatives from AT&T, HTC, and Facebook have not responded to our questions at time of writing), AT&T will continue to sell the First until it fulfills its contractual obligations to display the thing in its myriad retail stores.
And just how bad was the First doing? Epstein expounds a bit on Twitter, noting that the infinitely lamer HTC Status sold more during its first month on the market than the First did. That may not be the most fair comparison to make considering that the Status was HTC’s first foray into baking Facebook directly into an Android device (and in a time when the Facebook Android app was markedly worse than it is now), but there you have it. What’s also unclear is what such a move would mean for the First in other markets — HTC CEO Peter Chou noted at the Facebook Home launch event that the device would be carried by France’s Orange and the UK’s EE later this summer.
To be quite honest, it’s not exactly a shock to hear that the First hasn’t managed to whip the smartphone-hungry masses into a frenzy. Less than a week ago, AT&T slashed the on-contract price of the First from $99 to a scant $0.99 — it seemed like a curious move at the time given just how new the First was, but many took it as a signal that the sales situation was dire. The real question here is what managed to turn off consumers more: the First’s relatively modest spec sheet, or its reliance on Facebook Home. If I were a betting man, my money would be on the latter considering the thorough drubbing that Facebook’s replacement launcher has received from reporters and users alike and the fact that interest in Home as a whole seems to be waning.
We’re working to verify this rumor one way or the other, but for now it’s best to take this whole thing with a grain of salt. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time a Facebook phone was erroneously thought to be taking a dip in the deadpool.
This week it’s become apparent that not only are sales of the HTC One lacking – that device also known as the first “true” Facebook Phone – the software isn’t doing so hot either. As the Facebook Home software for Android reaches 1 million downloads, it also falls off the top 100 downloaded apps list. Much less exciting than it was when it first launched – finding more excitement specifically on SlashGear’s own Facebook page than any other subject in the past few months (barring the GALAXY S 4 and the HTC One, of course).
According to a “trusted source” speaking with BGR, the HTC First has already been scheduled for an “end of life” date. This means that the device will no longer be sold in stores, its support date will be shorter than expected, and the carrier will no longer be advertising for it (of course).
This news comes soon after the device started its pricing at $199 several weeks ago and just last week started a sale for less than a dollar. This pricing indicates that either Facebook, HTC, and AT&T decided they’d sell as many phones as possible to get the word out about how great it was, or they simply haven’t had as many sales as they’d liked – so few that they’re getting rid of what they’ve got before they axe the program.
If such a tip were true, this would be a bad sign for Facebook. That’s needless to say, but it should be said nonetheless. With suggestions out in the wild this week that the crew creating Facebook Home were actually a bunch of landlubbers – or iPhone users working on Android software, that is – it should come as no surprise that pitting the HTC First up against the iPhone would have had little chance at success.
“Factor in things like the complete lack of support for widgets and the inability to tailor who gets included in Cover Feed, and Facebook Home stumbles out of the gate. As a result, it’s difficult to recommend it to anybody other than those solely committed to Facebook (and even those most fervent users of the site were mixed when we showed them Facebook Home and explained what it offered), and if you’re also a Twitter user, or a Google+ user, or rely on other messaging apps like WhatsApp, LINE, or others, for every advantage Facebook Home provides, there’s a compromise to be made elsewhere.” – Vincent Nguyen, Facebook Home Review
Of course because of this perfect storm scenario, SlashGear encourages you to take it all with a spoon full of salt – and make sure you wait until AT&T and Facebook release more official numbers to their investors before you break out the torches and tinfoil hats!
HTC First reportedly discontinued by AT&T: Facebook Home hopeless? is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Facebook Home was launched with much fanfare, the initial hype saw it being downloaded on supported devices over 500,000 times in a single week. Since then, it seems like Facebook Home’s popularity has substantially declined. Most users who downloaded it left one-star reviews on Google Play, as they weren’t impressed by its functionality. The social networking giant launched its latest software offering with HTC First, which is the first smartphone to ship with Home pre-installed. This is probably why its often referred to as the ‘Facebook Phone.’ The device is AT&T exclusive for now, it was originally $99.99 on contract, now its virtually free, going for just $0.99. That’s less than what most apps cost!
AT&T hasn’t revealed why it has made HTC First virtually free on contract, but it can be assumed that most customers won’t be willing to purchase the device considering that $99.99 up front gets them the likes of 16GB iPhone 4S, HTC 8X or the Galaxy S3. AT $0.99 the handset is a steal, and given how Facebook Home can be deactivated, customers are ultimately left with a mid-range LTE compatible smartphone that has a 4.3 inch display. Is the price compelling enough for you to pick one up on contract?
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Windows Phone 8 Full Resolution Photo And Video Backup Goes Worldwide, IHS: 32GB Samsung Galaxy S4 Costs $237 To Build, 
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The HTC First is the Facebook phone that social networking addicts have been craving for, but it seems AT&T is desperately trying move inventory of the new device because they just dropped the subsidy price of the First down to a mere $0.99 for a limited time. Previously, the phone sold for $99 after signing a two-year contract.
Be aware that this isn’t a permanent price drop, but basically just a limited-time sale that will most likely only last a few days or possibly a couple of weeks. Frankly, we’re surprised to see such a new and popular phone be put on the price-chopping block so soon, but it hints to the possibility that AT&T isn’t selling them like hotcakes, and the price drop could be a strategy to get more of these devices out the door.
The phone is your typical mid-range device that comes packing with the latest chipset. A Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor leads the show, clocked at 1.4MHz, with 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. The 5MP camera on the back certainly works, but we wouldn’t use as our dedicated mobile snapper by any means.
However, the First does sports 4G LTE and has a smaller 4.3-inch display that has a 720p resolution. Some users may not like the smaller screen compared to the larger displays of today’s phones (and could be one of the reasons behind potential poor sales), but it’s certainly nice to see a smaller device make its way into the limelight for those who want a more compact phone.
HTC First struggling as AT&T ramps Facebook phone subsidy is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Facebook Home was officially announced some ten days ago, alongside the HTC First. Facebook hopes to make Android smartphones more “people-centric” with its latest software offering, which Microsoft believes to be an imitation of Windows Phone. That side, Facebook hasn’t exactly had the best launch. At the moment Home is only available for a select few Android devices and HTC First is the only smartphone that ships with it pre-installed. Those who have installed it through Google Play Store have mostly given it bad reviews. Majority of the reviews give it a 1 star rating.
Facebook has already said that it aims to update its mobile apps at least once every month. The head of Mobile Engineering at Facebook, Cory Ondrejka, has revealed that Facebook Home’s first ever update will be released in the second week of May. He did not reveal any details about the actual update, so it is not know as of now what improvements it will be bringing. The update will not be exclusive to the HTC First, rather it will be available for those users as well who download Home through Play Store for their supported devices.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Now Available For LG Escape, Microsoft Has No Plans To Release Its Own Windows Phone Anytime Soon, 
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You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
HEach week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.
Facebook’s management doesn’t see any dichotomy in the phrase, “Go big or go home,” at least as far as it might pertain to Facebook Home. After being dogged for years with questions about whether the Land o’ Likes would create its own smartphone despite consistent denials, the company explained that its own phone wouldn’t give it the reach it would need for its more than 1 billion members. With the exceptions of the iPhone and the Galaxy S series, a successful handset today might sell 20 million units. That’s a number that many services would dream of reaching, but it’s just one-fiftieth of Facebook’s user base.
And yet, Facebook Home will start out factory-installed on only one device: the HTC First, a mid-range Android device available exclusively from AT&T. Home is also available as a download from Google Play for a handful of other popular Android handsets, including the Galaxy S III.
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Apple, Samsung, HTC, Blackberry, Facebook
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