HTC Announces Availability of the HTC Shift in the United States

Available for pre-order today, the HTC Shift combines multiple days of direct push email, unabridged connectivity through the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network and the power of Windows Vista with Origami Experience 2.0

HTC Corp. (TSE:2498)(“HTC”), a mobile technology pioneer and a global leader in smartphone design and manufacturing, today announced the nationwide availability of the HTC Shift™. Harnessing the power of Windows Vista and Microsoft Origami Experience 2.0, the HTC Shift blends advanced wireless connectivity with a sleek design that is half the size and a fraction of the weight of a standard notebook. Operating on the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network, the HTC Shift can leverage always-connected CDMA-EVDO connectivity and features true push email with up to three days of battery life. Today, Sprint covers more square miles, cities, and airports with mobile broadband than any other carrier, offering the nation’s largest mobile broadband network to HTC Shift users.

“For the first time, customers can experience an extremely small, touch-optimized PC with high speed cellular connectivity and push email. The result is an unmatched mobile computing experience,” said Jason Mackenzie, vice president of HTC America. “We are pleased to meet our customers’ growing mobility needs by bringing this state-of-the-art product to the United States.”

“The Sprint Mobile Broadband Network offers advanced connectivity and fast connection speeds that reach more than 13,453 cities and 1,321 airports so customers can use the HTC Shift just about wherever they may work or play across the nation,” said Danny Bowman, vice president of customer equipment for Sprint. “We are pleased to continue our strong relationship with HTC as they continue to design innovative devices that serve a critical need in the marketplace when combined with Sprint Mobile Broadband Service.”

Device Features

The HTC Shift features the power and connectivity the travelling, busy professional needs. This is the first device to feature HTC’s innovative new SnapVUE™ technology. SnapVUE provides instant access to emails, calendar, SMS messages and contacts, without the need to fully boot up the device, which helps conserve power and extend battery life. Also a great multimedia companion, the HTC Shift utilizes Windows Media Player 11 to provide easy access to music, videos and photos. Other features include:
7″ touch sensitive ’slide-n-tilt’ screen
Windows Vista Business edition
40-gigabyte hard drive
Light weight of 1.8 pounds
802.11 b/g Wi-Fi connectivity
High-speed data connectivity with CDMA-EVDO service through Sprint
Bluetooth® 2.0
Windows Media Player 11 to provide easy access to music, videos and photos.

Pricing and Availability

The HTC Shift is available for pre-order in the United States today online at www.htc.com and www.amazon.com for an approximate retail price of $1,499 and will begin shipping on Monday, March 24. For more information on the HTC Shift, please visit www.SwitchOffStayConnected.com.

About HTC

Founded in 1997, HTC Corp. (HTC) designs, manufactures and markets innovative, feature rich smartphone and PDA phone devices.

Since its establishment, HTC has developed strong R&D capabilities, pioneered many new designs and product innovations and launched state-of-the-art PDA phones and smartphones for mobile operators and distributors in Europe, the US, and Asia. These machines are available as HTC devices and as products individually customized for operator and device partners.

HTC is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile device market. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit http://www.htc.com.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Contacts

HTC America
Josh Kerwin, 425-679-5351
Josh_Kerwin {at} htc(.)com
or
Waggener Edstrom Worldwide
Ashley Johnson, 425-638-7000
HTCPR {at} waggeneredstrom(.)com