HTC has reportedly signed an exclusive deal with Alphabet, the company that owns Google, to manufacture Nexus smartphones for the next three years. The news comes on the heels of HTC's ongoing preparations to launch two Nexus phones this year end.
According to MyDrivers, the Chinese publication which broke out the news about HTC's new deal with Alphabet, the Taiwanese tech giant would be the sole Nexus smartphone manufacturer for Google's flagship smartphone line until 2018. If true, HTC would have first hand access to the latest Android versions, including Android N, O and P in the next two years.
This wouldn't be the first time for HTC as it made the first ever Nexus phone in 2010 and also partnered with Google for Nexus 9 tablet in 2014. But the exclusive deal comes as a surprise to many as Google has preferred more than one OEM to manufacture its Nexus devices. For instance, the latest flagships Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P were made by LG and Huawei, respectively.
LG has already said that it won't launch a Nexus phone this year, while Huawei is in the news for building the successor to Nexus 6P, which was well-received by critics for its design and specs.
Rumours about HTC building two Nexus phones with 5 and 5.5-inch screens are rife. Both devices are internally known as T50 and T55 and are said to include Apple's 3D Touch like display. There isn't much to go by to confirm that HTC will solely take up the charge to build the Nexus phones for the next three years.
Google is expected to announce its Android N software in May at the I/O conference in California. But the Marshmallow successor will only be seen in the market with the launch of a new Nexus phone, which is expected to happen in September.
