HTC makes “Studio” design division under CEO

HTC doesn't look so hot at the moment, at least from a financial point of view. But that doesn't mean they're resting on their laurels. The Taiwanese manufacturer announced a new department, code-named "Studio", which will report directly to CEO Peter Chou. The Studio division (which probably isn't its final name) will be compromised of leading designers and engineers, with the purpose of overcoming some of the company's identified shortcomings in its 2011 devices.

![][1]

Two design aspects in particular that they identified as needing revision are thinness of phones' profiles and the relationship between LTE connections and battery drain. Anyone who's owned an HTC ThunderBolt can identify with these problems, and its successors the Rezound and Vivid aren't all that much better. All this is compounded by smaller and for the most part better phones from HTC's primary competitors: the Samsung Galaxy S II LTE (AKA the Skyrocket on AT&T) and the Motorola DROID RAZR. HTC's obviously working fast, as the much-leaked [HTC Ville][2] headed to Mobile World Congress is already shaping up to be a thin, powerful phone.

Also of note in their conference call was a hint towards a more "open-minded" attitude when it comes to selecting components. The HTC representative specifically mentioned CPUs in this context. Considering the Ville's supposed launch partner, the HTC Edge, that makes a lot of sense: the Edge will probably be the first smartphone to use an Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, as opposed to HTC's usual Qualcomm SoC's. Both devices are expected to make an appearance at [HTC's pre-Mobile World Congress event][3] in late February.

#### Story Timeline

* [HTC Primo leaks: Android 4.0, Beats Audio, and budget friendly ][4] on Jan 23rd 2012
* [HTC pledges to follow a 'Hero Device' strategy for 2012][5] on Jan 26th 2012
* [HTC Sense 4.0 details emerge before Mobile World Congress][6] on Jan 27th 2012
* [HTC Ville prototype caught on video][7] on Jan 31st 2012
* [HTC promises fix for WiFi security flaw, some phones already updated][8] on Feb 2nd 2012
* [HTC posts somber 2011 results, low predictions for 2012][9] on Feb 6th 2012
* [HTC Ville leaks again in new spy photos][10] on Feb 6th 2012

[[via][11] Unwired View]

[![][12]][13]
[![][14]][15]

[1]: http://cdn.androidcommunity.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/htc-edge.jpg
[2]: http://androidcommunity.com/tag/htc-ville/
[3]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-edge-rumored-for-a-mobile-world-congress-unveil-on-2-26-20120120/
[4]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-primo-leaks-android-4-0-beats-audio-and-budget-friendly-20120123/
[5]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-pledges-to-follow-a-hero-device-strategy-for-2012-20120126/
[6]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-sense-4-0-details-emerge-before-mobile-world-congress-20120127/
[7]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-ville-prototype-caught-on-video-20120131/
[8]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-promises-fix-for-wifi-security-flaw-some-phones-already-updated-20120202/
[9]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-posts-somber-2011-results-low-predictions-for-2012-20120206/
[10]: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-ville-leaks-again-in-new-spy-photos-20120206/
[11]: http://www.unwiredview.com/2012/02/06/htc-creates-%E2%80%9Cstudio%E2%80%9D-group-directly-under-ceo-to-drive-new-device-strategy-hints-move-away-from-qualcomm/
[12]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tk5imLx48Cv-aawsDSBRK-0ib9M/0/di
[13]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tk5imLx48Cv-aawsDSBRK-0ib9M/0/da
[14]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tk5imLx48Cv-aawsDSBRK-0ib9M/1/di
[15]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/tk5imLx48Cv-aawsDSBRK-0ib9M/1/da

URL: http://androidcommunity.com/htc-makes-studio-design-division-under-ceo-20120206/