Its Apple That Copies Us, Says HTC Executive

HIGHLIGHTS

• HTC executive has refuted the design rip-off accusations

• He said its Apple who copies them in terms of the antenna design on the back

• We’ll have to see whether Apple agrees or not

The new HTC One A9 smartphone showed its face to the world earlier this week, and many couldn’t help but notice that face looked awfully similar to an iPhone.

Now, HTC is firing back at the copycat comments: An executive said that the tables should be turned when it comes to design rip-off accusations.

“We’re not copying,” said Jack Tong, president of HTC North Asia, according to Want ChinaTimes. “We made a unibody metal-clad phone in 2013. It’s Apple that copies us in terms of the antenna design on the back.”

2012’s HTC One S featured a ceramic-like surface, one Apple didn’t introduce until the iPhone 6 much later.

In his comments, Tong was referring to the HTC One M7, a 2013 phone that not only features the two lines going across a single-colored back piece but also brought forth a new way to orient the antenna on a metal-clad phone.

Tong reinforced his point: “The A9 is made thinner and more lightweight than our previous metal-clad phones. This is a change and evolution, and we’re not copying.”

We’ll have to see whether Apple agrees, and whether consumers will choose to buy an Android 6.0 device that looks like an iPhone rather than heading straight for the iPhone.