Sprint and HTC are expected to launch the HTC Bolt, a 5.5-inch Android 7.0 Nougat smartphone, in the near future. A source claims the handset could launch globally as the HTC 10 evo.
While Samsung is facing the fallout from its defective Galaxy Note 7, we're already beginning to see rivals take aim at the smartphone giant in hopes of luring its customers away to non-exploding Android smartphones. LG just revealed that its new LG V20 has gone through 60,000 validation tests before the handset ever even entered production. The LG V20 is one of the only smartphones to ship with Google's latest version of Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, although Google's new Pixel and Pixel XL devices will actually run a newer version of Android 7.1 Nougat upon release.
HTC is expected to be the next major Android licensee to launch a new smartphone with Android 7.0 Nougat as one of its main attractions. The company has reportedly partnered with Sprint in the U.S. to exclusively release the HTC Bolt, which could launch before the end of October or shortly thereafter.
If you were impressed by the HTC Bolt but have no plans on switching to Sprint to get your hands on the smartphone, the always-reliable Evan Blass is reporting that HTC could be planning to launch the handset in other markets as the HTC 10 evo.
"HTC Bolt may be marketed globally as the HTC 10 evo," the tipster posted the information on his Twitter page.
The HTC 10 evo will reportedly boast a 5.5-inch 1,920 x 1,080 Full HD display and run Android 7.0 Nougat alongside an updated version of HTC Sense. The handset will be powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor and 3 GB of RAM. It's expected to ship with 64 GB of internal storage and a microSD expansion slot that will allow users to further increase its available space.
Reports also claim the new smartphone will pack in an 18-megapixel rear camera and 8-megapixel front-facing snapper. Leaked images of Sprint's HTC Bolt show the device will include a physical home button below its display, and like Apple's iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, HTC has dropped the standard 3.5 mm headphone port.
It appears that HTC is planning to market the HTC 10 evo as a variant of its current flagship HTC 10. If the evo name sounds familiar, HTC previously used it in several Sprint-exclusive smartphones. The HTC Evo 4G, which was released in 2010, was Sprint's first smartphone to run on its 4G WiMAX network before it eventually moved to the now-standard 4G LTE networks used by all major carriers. The HTC Evo 3D was released by Sprint in 2011 and was marketed as the world's first 3D-enabled smartphone.
We'll keep you posted on any new information pertaining to both the Sprint HTC Bolt and HTC 10 evo as more details become available.
