HTC to build two new Nexus phones for Google; could drop later this year

2015's Nexus line-up was catered to by LG and Huawei with the impressive Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P respectively. Google's decision to employ two manufacturing partners seemed to pay dividends, though according to reports, the Big G has penned a three-year deal with HTC to produce the next few batches. The Taiwanese firm has already unveiled its impressive-looking flagship smartphone for the year, and according to perpetual leakster Evan Blass, the company is working on a couple of new devices for Google that could be unveiled later this year. 

Internally, the devices are being dubbed the M1 and the S1, though these monikers are unlikely to be carried over to the devices themselves. It's possible, if not necessarily certain, that the M1 and S1 are both smartphones akin to the Nexus 5X and 6P. Then again, it may also be the case that HTC has been commissioned to create a smartphone and a tablet. 

The folks at Android Police believe that M1 stands for codename 'Marlin', while S1 is 'Sailfish'—not that Sailfish—and seem relatively confident of this. Unfortunately, details are fairly scarce for now, so we'll have to wait and see what kinds of specs and designs are in store from this pair of HTC creations. 

HTC has struggled in the smartphone arena over the past couple of years, but appears to have made up some ground with the HTC 10. Thus, the prospect of one or two HTC-built Nexus handsets is rather more appealing than it might have been . 

Do you think HTC is up to carrying the flag for the Nexus line? Let us know in the comments. 

source: Evan Blass via Android Police