HTC Android 9 Pie update expected next quarter
Despite its somewhat close relationship with Google and near vanilla Android experience, HTC is practically on the same boat as LG. Both OEMs have become notorious for the snail-paced rollout of their Android updates to the point that they have unseated previous title holder Samsung. HTC has, in fact, been largely silent for the past months since the launch of Android 9 Pie last August. Now it is breaking that silence to deliver the good news that its update may arrive sometime within the next three months.
That means it will be more than half a year since Android Pie was launched before HTC will even start part of its rollout to its semi-recent smartphones. While some phones, especially mid-range models from lesser known companies, may never even get a taste of Pie, HTC is held to a higher regard because of its size, legacy, and experience. Especially considering it has very few smartphones these days to work on anyway.
We wanted to share the status on the Android 9 update. HTC is currently working on ensuring the update is compatible with our phones & we anticipate a release for U11, U11+ & U12+ customers starting Q2'19. Exact timing defers to operators' availabilities in different countries.
— HTC (@htc) March 11, 2019
It only "anticipates" a release which, along with the rather broad timeline and open-ended schedule, doesn't exactly inspire confidence. The tweet also mentions three models, two of which were launched way back in 2017. HTC currently has no 2019 smartphone yet and there has practically been no rumors of one.
To be fair, HTC today may only be a shadow of its former self. If it used to blame the speed, or lack of it, of updates on carrier certifications, now it will probably blame it on the lack of manpower to develop and test updates for its remaining few smartphones.
This is perhaps also why HTC is heavily investing in a blockchain smartphone like the Exodus 1. In an ideal world, such a phone's apps and features will be decentralized, with no single authority or point of failure. In that ideal world, perhaps software updates and maintenance will also be done by decentralized community members, taking the burden off HTC's shoulders.