While users in Taiwan have been anxiously awaiting the release of HTC's One M9 today, they got some last-minute news that the launch would be postponed until the end of this week while the Chinese company is already teasing "big news" on Wednesday.
Customers who pre-ordered the high-end HTC smartphone were told in a text message that March 20 is the new release date for Taiwan, while U.S. customers may have to wait until March 25 for the $649 32GB version.
The reason for the delay, according to the text, is to provide "the latest version of the software," but it doesn't look like this initial pre-order release delay for HTC's home market will carry over to those in other countries.
In addition, a recent benchmark test has shown that the problems with launch may be a bit deeper than just software. A Dutch website has done some heat tests on several smartphones running Qualcomm's Snapdragon 810 processor after Samsung ditched the chip for something that doesn't overheat. The site showed off infrared images of five phones side-by-side to let potential customers know just how hot these chips can get in certain phones.
Unfortunately for HTC customers, the One M9 tested with the highest temperature at 55 degrees Celsius (131 degrees Fahrenheit), which was tremendously hotter than any other the other five tested.
The site notes, though, that the overheating occurred with software that wasn't finalized, so a tweak to that software could result in much cooler running temperatures, which may be exactly what HTC is doing now.
In addition to that Snapdragon 810 processor, the HTC One M9 is expected to feature a 5-inch Super LCD3 touchscreen with 1080 x 1920 resolution, 32 and 64 GB of storage, a whopping 3 GB of RAM, 20.7-megapixel rear and 4-megapixel front cameras, an Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, and compass.
The operating system is expected to be something in the Android 5.0 Lollipop line, although it's uncertain if it will reach up to 5.0.2 or even 5.1.
As for the big news coming on Wednesday, HTC's Jason Mackenzie let the teaser out on his Twitter account earlier this morning. "Going to be an exciting week. In addition to NCAA tourney, HTC has a BIG announcement for US customers on Wednesday. #HTCOneM9"
Of course, the most likely scenario for this info would be either a release date or a carrier list -- or both. Android Central is speculating that the unlocked or developer editions could also be announced, meaning direct availability straight through HTC.
As of right now, only AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint have said that they will be carrying the HTC One M9 on their networks, but HTC may have a surprise up its sleeve (Verizon, maybe?). A definite price is also expected to be announced at the same time as release date, but so far we've only heard of the $649 price rumored for the 32 GB version.
