HTC Rolls Out Blockchain Smartphone "Exodus" with Bullish Specifications

Ten years from the rollout of the first ever Android phone, HTC has taken the covers off its DLT-powered smartphone, known as Exodus.

HTC, the Taiwanese electronics bull, has formally announced the "early access release of Exodus 1", the firm's first-ever blockchain technology phone. Ready for pre-order on its official website, the smartphone will launch sometime in December this year and can only be bought using digital currency, particularly Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). 

HTC Specs 

The device is currently priced at 0.15 Bitcoin or 4.78 Ethereum, around $960 which is comparable to the Samsung Galaxy Note 9. Exodus 1 is a 6-inch with a processor of 6GB RAM, 128 GB ROM and battery of 3,500mAh. 

Proclaimed with a lot of hype as the 'globe’s first native DLT smartphone' in May 2018, HTC Exodus enables support for DApps such as CryptoKitties and is a hardware wallet for digital currency adopters. 

The smartphone's 'secure enclave' holds the client's private digital currency keys, HTC elaborated. Moreover, a 'Social Key Recovery' mechanism admits the client to recover access to their digital currency funds in the occurrence of losing their private keys by choosing select credible contacts. 

HTC is officially inviting cryptographers to thoroughly test the early access version of its gadget and is further "releasing APIs for third-party developers." 

Paradigm for Smartphones 

While speaking to CNBC, Phil Chen, HTC's decentralized chief revealed that: 

“We believe blockchain is the new paradigm for smartphones and it will form part of HTC’s wider smartphone strategy. This marks a change in HTC, with increased focus on software and IP.” 

The smartphone is available for preorder in 34 nations including the UK, Singapore, US, Hong Kong and several European countries, with the notable exception of China, where digital currency trading and exchanges are prohibited. 

The HTC Exodus has a contender already in its Technology type, with Sirin Labs, a Swiss startup, believed to be set to release its own $1,000 DLT smartphone, the Finney, to be produced by iPhone-maker Foxconn before 2018 ends.