14 DAY TRIAL // One of the rumors that have emerged online over the past several months has been related to the launch of Google’s Nexus 6 smartphone, suggesting that HTC, the vendor that launched the very first Nexus phone out there, might release it.
Three mobile phone makers have brought Nexus phones to shelves until now, including HTC, Samsung, and LG, in this chronological order.
With the past two devices coming from LG, it has been somehow expected for the upcoming phone to arrive from a different vendor, though no specific details on which of them might have embarked in this quest have been provided as of now.
Some rumors have pointed at LG remaining the manufacturer of choice for the Nexus 6, while others have claimed that HTC could be that company.
Considering the fact that the first Nexus came from this vendor, and that Samsung and LG have already launched two such devices each, we could easily accept that HTC would bring the sixth phone in the series to the market.
Alleged confirmation on HTC’s involvement in the upcoming Nexus comes by means of the Android 4.4.3 (KitKat MR2) changelist, which unveils two devices, codenamed Flounder and Molly, as the guys over at XDA-Developers have uncovered.
The former is believed to be the HTC Nexus 8 tablet PC that has made it online a few times before, but little is known on what Molly might be all about, and rumor has it that this could actually be the successor of Nexus 5.
We’ll take this with a grain of salt for the time being, but, as mentioned above, the new details seem to be falling in line with what has happened in the lineup until now.
Only one thing appears to be certain at the moment, namely the fact that Google is getting ready for the release of two new devices, most probably set to be included in the Nexus lineup soon.
Additionally, there’s also the matter of the Nexus series of smartphones being supposedly set to end its journey this year with the launch of Nexus 6, and expected to be replaced with a certain Silver family of devices in 2015.
These new phones should offer a similar stock Android experience, as the Nexus and Google Play handsets are doing at the moment, but they will be targeted at the very high-end market, rumor has it. Hopefully, more on the matter will emerge sooner rather than later, so stay tuned to learn the news.
Update: According to Android Police, Molly might actually prove to be Android TV, and not a phone or tablet PC.