HTC Proto could join the HTC One series later this year as a 4 inch version of the One V

HTC, which this week confirmed that its third quarter is going to be nothing to write home about, has bet the farm on its HTC One Series. This was made apparent with the recent speculation about the HTC One X+, a "refresh" for the manufacturer's flagship model that is supposedly powered by a quad-core 1.7GHz Tegra 3+ processor. This model is allegedly heading to T-Mobile and its HDPA 4G pipeline.

See that chin? It's the HTC One V

Now, the word is that with its high end model purportedly being taken care of, HTC is looking to update the low end of it's One series by offering the HTC Proto, a  "refresh" for the HTC One V. Actually, it's not clear if the Proto will be considered a One series phone, or if it will be marketed by the Taiwan based manufacturer as a separate and distinct model. Regardless, the device is said to offer some specs that are a step up from the HTC One V starting with the 4 inch WVGA SLCD display which is larger than the 3.7 inch screen on the One V.

The big change is under the hood where the single-core processor is replaced by a dual-core Qualcomm MSM8225 S4 processor clocked at 1GHz. The Proto apes the HTC One V otherwise with 512MB of RAM, a 5MP camera and 7.2Mbps HSPA connectivity. Beats Audio is supposed to be on board although the recent financial maneuvering might lead to a change on that front.

The HTC Proto is expected sometime later this year and there is no word on pricing or carrier availability.

source: TheVerge via AndroidAuthority