Telstra said at day 1 that they weren’t going to launch an Android device until they thought the platform was mature & stable enough. They kept that stance until the HTC Desire was announced, a device they welcomed with open arms and really pushed, and it was that push that I believe really started the Android “craze” in Australia. Telstra made the Desire their flagship Android device with a 6 month exclusive and pricing that was extremely competitive. 5 months have now passed, leaving Telstra with a little over a month left of the Desire exclusive. They should know that VHA & Virgin would love to add the Desire to their Android device lineups, and that they now have to find another device to keep at the forefront of the high-end Android market.
In comes the HTC Desire Z, a beefed up Desire with a keyboard. This device is perfectly suited for Telstra, they can market it aggressively like they did with the original Desire. Having both the Desire & Desire Z enables Telstra to better suit a wider range of smartphone consumers, not all want a keyboard & not all want a full touchscreen device. If they don’t get the Desire Z, they then have to wait for HTC to release a newer device with a keyboard, which will take months, or, they can completely jump ship and snare the Motorola Milestone 2, which eliminates the consistency they currently have with their HTC lineup. I think it would be stupid of Telstra not to get a high-end QWERTY Android device, as there is a huge demand for it.
But that’s just my thoughts.. What do you guys think?
