HTC's dual-mode CDMA / GSM Android slider hits the FCC, decked out in shades of Verizon
Remember that big, honking red-and-black HTC slider that dwarfed an EVO 4G? It's back sporting Verizon colors just as we were told, and with a few more confirmed specifications thanks to the ever-reliable FCC.
Context & Ripple Effects
The red-and-black HTC slider that surfaced a week ago in leaked photos dwarfing an EVO 4G has now cleared its first regulatory hurdle: an FCC filing showing dual-mode CDMA/GSM radios in Verizon's signature colors. The filing converts what was rumor into confirmed hardware, adding specifications ahead of any official announcement.
The timing lands mid-ramp for HTC on Verizon: Android had just taken the leading U.S. smartphone OS position in Q2 2010 with Motorola and HTC as its engine carriers, and HTC was simultaneously pressing Apple on patents while reportedly building Google's Chrome OS tablet. Another big-screen Verizon-bound slider extends the pipeline that made HTC Motorola's chief rival inside the Droid ecosystem.
First-order effects
- HTC gains a confirmed, FCC-validated flagship candidate for Verizon, letting marketing and carrier launch plans proceed on real hardware rather than leaked renders.
Second-order effects
- Motorola faces renewed pressure to keep its Verizon Droid lineup ahead of HTC's, since both makers are now competing for the same flagship slot on the carrier that anchors U.S. Android sales.
Third-order effects
- Dual-mode CDMA/GSM radios in a single Verizon handset point toward world-roaming smartphones becoming table stakes for U.S. carriers, with FCC filings hardening into the standard early-leak channel that sets each device's news cycle before launch.
The trend: U.S. Android flagships are consolidating around a Verizon-HTC-Motorola triangle, with FCC filings replacing press releases as the first public confirmation of new hardware.