HTC One and Galaxy S4 Gets Google Play Editions

By releasing Google Edition phones, HTC and Samsung could be getting an advantage when updating their non-Google-branded Android devices
As promised, “Google Play” editions of the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 are now available for purchase.

In terms of hardware, both phones are exactly like the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4 that are already available from wireless carriers. The difference is that these phones run an unmodified version of Android–essentially the same software as Google’s Nexus phones–as opposed to the gussied-up (some might say bloated) software that comes with the standard-issue One and GS4.

Though I personally no longer prefer pure Android phones, I understand the appeal for a small subset of users, especially app developers. What I don’t get, however, is why Samsung and HTC are even bothering with these Google Edition phones given their limited sales potential.

The market for unsubsidized, pure Google phones is tiny, and always has been. The first-ever Nexus phone, HTC’s Nexus One, was outsold nearly 10 to 1 by Motorola’s Droid. Samsung has said that its Galaxy Nexus only captured 0.5% of the market after two quarters of availability, despite a subsidized model being available through Verizon Wireless. Estimates for Google’s Nexus 4 place sales somewhere between 400,000 units and 1 million units–not a lot by today’s standards.

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