Local consumers will be able to get their hands on HTC's flagship device, the HTC One, from the end of April.
This is according to Jon French, VP for HTC in Middle East and Africa, speaking at an HTC launch event, in Johannesburg, last night.
HTC has partnered with Vodacom and Cell C to launch the device, but will be announcing new partners in the coming months.
According to French, the emergence of a more tech-savvy consumer is bringing about a change in smartphone behaviour and forcing tech companies to change their strategies in order to cater to these needs. He admitted HTC had fallen behind in terms of innovation in the past, but believes the HTC One's build, performance and features make it the perfect tool to help the brand better challenge its competitors.
The device features an aluminum unibody design and a 4.7-inch display. It runs on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and supports LTE. Among the features are HTC's BlinkFeed home screen, which aggregates social media and news, depending on the user's preferences.
According to HTC, the device features an UltraPixel Camera with HTC Zoe, with a larger lens that allows more light in, making low-light photography easier. According to HTC, the Zoe feature brings images to life by automatically capturing up to 20 photos and a three-second video every time the user pushes the capture button. The HTC One is fitted with HTC BoomSound, with two front-facing stereo speakers and a built-in amplifier.
"We believe we have created a beautiful device that is groundbreaking in terms of photography, sound and design," said French.
Industry experts have already compared the HTC One to Samsung's recently unveiled Galaxy S4, in terms of design, camera performance, screen size and user interface. French encourages these comparisons, as he believes it will showcase the HTC One as the better product.
"I want us to be compared to our competitors. That's not arrogant, that's just being confident in our product, because we do believe we have one of the best smartphones on the planet, if not the best."
The Taiwanese smartphone maker recently announced its plan to focus more on emerging markets in 2013, in an attempt to boost sales in a global market dominated by Samsung Electronics and Apple, which currently hold a collective 50% of the global smartphone market share.
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