HTC further responds to video driver issue, will improve future products

It's pretty clear HTC customers and Engadget readers both are none too impressed with the manufacturer's decision to omit the drivers necessary to enable hardware video acceleration on a number of their Qualcomm MSM 7xxx-based devices. We heard a little bit from HTC on the topic earlier this week, but we wanted to know more specifically: do they plan to meet consumers' requests and release drivers for these devices? (And if not, why?) Finally, what's going to be done about this video acceleration driver issue in the future? Here's the response we got to these questions (and the reader poll we posted):

"HTC does plan to offer software upgrades that will increase feature functionality, over the air wireless speeds, and other enhancements for some of the phones being criticized, but we do not anticipate including any additional support for the video issues cited in customer complaints. It is important for customers to understand that bringing this functionality to market is not a trivial driver update and requires extensive software development and time.

HTC will utilize hardware video acceleration like the ATI Imageon in many upcoming products. Our users have made it clear that they expect our products to offer an improved visual experience, and we have included this feedback into planning and development of future products."

More after the break.

...continued

"To address lingering questions about HTC's current MSM 7xxx devices, it is important to establish that a chipset like an MSM7xxx is a platform with a vast multitude of features that enable a wide range of devices with varied functionality. It is common that devices built on platforms like Qualcomm's will not enable every feature or function.

In addition to making sure the required hardware is present, unlocking extended capabilities of chipsets like the MSM 7xxx requires in-depth and time consuming software development, complicated licensing negotiations, potential intellectual property negotiations, added licensing fees, and in the case of devices that are sold through operators, the desire of the operator to include the additional functionality. To make an informed decision about which handset suits them best, consumers should look at the product specification itself instead of using the underlying chipset specifications to define what the product could potentially become."

Well, sounds like that's that. Users shouldn't expect drivers for current devices, but HTC apparently intends to beef up hardware video acceleration in some (but not necessarily all) future Qualcomm based devices.

[Mike G @ Jan 25th 2008 6:59PM]

I suppose that I'm missing something.

If HTC never promised this capability, but rather people infered it based on the handset's processor type, how could HTC be liable?

Never ASSUME, it makes an ASS out of U and ME.

[PeterF @ Jan 25th 2008 7:09PM]

So, if I bought a computer from the store, I would assume that it came with graphic card drivers, wouldn't you? And even if it didn't, it would still be better than this because they can be found online, unlike the HTC phones.

[BigD145 @ Jan 25th 2008 7:11PM]

If a company leaves things open to interpretation, they will get flak. If you, as a company, advertise a specific chipset that has X capability, then say right up front that you will or will not use X. Be open to the consumer and the consumer will decide if they think your company is moving in the direction they want.

[daywalker2676 @ Jan 25th 2008 7:25PM]

I think if HTC's phones (or any products for that matter) are promoted as having an ATI video chip inside, it's implied that the chip is actually going to work as intended. However, since HTC decided not to provide drivers for its product, it's quite misleading to essentially claim, "these phones have ATI graphics."

Would anyone buy a car that is promoted as having a 4 cylinder engine with a turbo charger, and a few months after purchasing it discovering that although there is a turbo charger under the hood, it is in fact not connected to the engine or enhancing the vehicle's horse power as is intended?

To HTC: I was very excited to buy your phones, one for me and one for my wife. But after the bluetooth debalce with the Mogul and now this, I will just have to look elsewhere unfortunately. I am also the person that recommends tech products to my friends and family, and unfortunately, I can no longer in good conscience recommend your products. It is disappointing because, aside from these issues, your products are actually pretty cool.

[SimbaDogg @ Jan 25th 2008 8:18PM]

Mike G...you sir, are a moron.
I seriously dont get why people like you bring this up. If you knew anything about business law, or anything about advertising, you would know that its a big big big big big big no no to say that your product carries a particular feature, but that feature doesn't work. Even if HTC didn't advertise their peformance (which they did---"More powerful than any mobile communications device you've seen before, the HTC TyTN II takes global connectivity to the next level.") or state that there was a good video experience (which they did---"Rich media experience with AT&T Mobile Music, Video, TV and games") they're going to find themselves in hot legal water for this, and that's all but certain, its really only a matter of time before enough pissed off people get pushed to the edge. As someone said before, you would never never never buy a desktop or laptop computer, advertised w/ a great video card, and find that the video card drivers either dont work properly, or are missing. If that happened, you can be sure there'd be a lot of pissed off customers, whats the difference if its a phone?

And for HTC to say that putting together drivers isn't as easy as it sounds, its something that takes time and money...well no fucking shit. Really...seriously, really? Why do you think companies spend money on R&D and engineering. As if they're not making any money by selling these handsets like gangbusters. Word of advice HTC, you'd probably be better off spending your money getting a fix for these drivers, than fighting the issue in court, then having to do it anyway. Just my .02

[Mii @ Jan 25th 2008 10:16PM]

I think this is more in line with buying a 300hp BMW 335i, and finding out that it is capped at 150mph though you know from the horsepower, gearing and weight it should go faster. You ask them "wtf did you cap my car's top speed? I want a new ECU flash to unlock its true potential" They tell you "there are lots of costs and expenses required to allow that to happen. Safety concerns, the additional R&D and cost to make sure that the suspension will be reliable, and the tire rating won't take that speed on our stock configurations sold in the US. Just because we advertise it as the Ultimate driving machine, it doesn't mean it will allow you to drive it to its utmost capabilities. We never claimed it will go that speed, but we may release future vehicles that can travel in excess of 150mph safely."

I buy myself a Tivo, based on the specifications and the fact that it's running on Linux, I'm going to make the assumption that I can install Open Office on it because it's running an "open" operating system, it has the disk space and the USB port for a keyboard and mouse in addition to internet connectivity though the ethernet port. I bring it home in anticipation and find out that *gasp* it doesn't do what I thought it would do? "wtf I want my Tivo unlocked so I can run my package installer! give me a patch!" Tivo responds "Sir, we understand your concern. Unfortunately, we do not plan to offer that capability at this time, as the majority of our users are satisfied with the multimedia capabilties of our unit. We understand your interest, but the costs in R&D, support, and associated requirements to add word processing capabilities to our current model line make it highly unlikely. We will take your thoughts into consideration for our next generation DVR".

Get a grip people, just because the hardware came with it doesn't mean they have to use it. This happens all the time, everywhere. Especially with integrated chipsets, and system-on-a-chip products where it's cheaper to buy a product that has more features than you need, than the product that meets your exact specifications. Why? More people bought the one with more features, so eventually it became cheaper to produce in volume.

Let's say you're an HTC engineer, you go to your boss and say "Boss, these phones have 3d acceleration, lets activate it and advertise it!". "You idiot, what are we going to do, enable 3d, advertise it and have no bundled 3d applications to go with it? Or do you want us to write our own? We'd get screamed at. What do we do when Broadcomm's chipset drops in price and we replace the chipset in the product line mid-life? We'd have to repackage, change the model name, issue new manuals, change the advertising, and deal with the hordes of screaming fanboys who are pissed they got the older rev. Stick to your job Nelson!!"

You'd be surprised how many of your other devices around he house have untapped potential. If you want to hack it to give it more capabilities, more power to you. Just don't think that the manufacturers owe you anything other than what's in the manual.

[SimbaDogg @ Jan 25th 2008 10:59PM]

@Mii
as the comic book guy would say, "word analogies EVERRR". seriously, you analogies straight up suck. they're awful, and really bad. Please name one product in the world, anything....where its advertised to have something installed, but doesn't make use of it. Name anything, i challenge you. The BMW example was horrible because you know what, you can still use all that power at any speed blow 150, and on top of that, when is it exactly legal to go 150 except on a track? its done for safety reasons. You'd sound even more intelligent if you said, BMW came out w/ an all new turbo inline 6 that makes over 300 hp...but when the hood is popped, the turbos aren't hooked up to anything...in fact they're actually pictures of turbos where the turbos should be like in the simpsons episode.

Another dumb analogy...your HTC engineer. Really, seriously? You're being serious. Lets put your example this way, it'd be like ATI/Nvidia coming out w/ a kick ass video card, but them manager saying we shouldn't release the proper drives for it...lets turn it down a bit because there aren't any video games out yet that can fully utilize it. Do you understand how stupid that sounds? If you make hardware, make your fucking hardware and make it run properly. let th people that make video games and software worry about utilizing your hardware. jesus w/ some of you people...

[Andrew @ Jan 26th 2008 1:38AM]

Did they specifically state it has that chip in the phone, and that the ATI capabilities were in use?

Claiming that their phones have a rich media experience doesn't infer that they carry an ATI graphic card. As the media experience is considered "rich" when compared to the vast majority of phones on the market.

You would have to prove that you bought the phone thinking that it had the ATI graphic system because it was advertised that way, not because you looked up the unadvertised chipset, and discovered that it was capable of it and therefore it does use it.

I realize this is an emotional issue for the owners of these devices, and I think some of you may be letting your emotions sway your judgment.

Hasn't this same thing been going on for years?
I bought my laptop with a 1.6GHz processor, but it was actually created as a stock 1.8GHz and clocked down to save on production costs. The case with your handset is similar, they make these OEM chipsets with many features, you have to expect not all of them will be used.

If you want to complain, ask your cell providers why many of them disable OBEX over Bluetooth, or disable the GPS in your phones.

[Eugenia Loli-Queru @ Jan 25th 2008 7:08PM]

I own an unlocked TyTN-II and so this problem never sat well with me. Maybe that's why I moved to the iPhone. Thing is, I still have the TyTN-II around, and I would like to use it more if it had some better multimedia performance. I hope HTC turns around and releases a driver for free or for a small fee. I am not going to buy a new HTC, as the TyTN-II was all I needed regarding the rest of its features.

[PeterF @ Jan 25th 2008 7:10PM]

There should be NO fee if they do it. Does nVidia charge you to download their drivers? ATI? Intel?

[Chris S. @ Jan 25th 2008 7:12PM]

CorePlayer is pretty good for movies. 1.2 is being released February 21st, and the newly released 1.1.3 addresses some TyTN II-specific issues with playback.

[eric @ Jan 26th 2008 3:06AM]

Well fancy seeing you here!

I'm semicolon on the hv20 forum.

[Nathan @ Jan 25th 2008 7:10PM]

Well HTC did advertise the "multimedia experience" as part of their product's capabilities, and being that is has trouble rendering the GUI effectively, that's probably at least a little bit of false advertising.

[Nathan @ Jan 25th 2008 7:14PM]

Sigh...again...this was supposed to be a reply to Mike G...

*must...kill...comment...system...developer*

[Chris S. @ Jan 25th 2008 7:11PM]

It was their vague use of such phrases as, "most powerful," and saying the device could be used for a wide array of features that led users to believe the device was capable of more than what was brought out. And, we read to far into the specs.

Imagine a fish that didn't have omega3 fatty acids but says it's a fish and the best fish to eat. It may be the best, but one of the basic components of all fish is missing. We inferred, didn't assume, that the fish also included what the previous fish we'd eaten did (i.e. in the phone, a decent response, system-wide, of user interactions).

BTW

It's not about the damn video playback. Our Tilts/TyTN II's/Stellars/MDA III's are just plain slow. The painting of different applications (and speed of even the advertised TomTom) is so poor for a device from 2007 that was suppose to be, "more powerful."

[Big Sam @ Jan 25th 2008 7:11PM]

Its not just the multimedia performance, it would also improve the speed of the screen being redrawn during simple activities such as going from portrait to landscape mode. Its pitiful how slow it currently is.

[PSM @ Jan 25th 2008 11:18PM]

Exactly. I understand their point that it would take additional time, but what they seem to be saying is that they were not setting out to create a multimedia-heavy device. OK, fine. But what they've created is a device that sucks ass at drawing the simplest UI elements onscreen in a timely manner. Was that their intention? It sure sounds like it based on that statement. So now I am even less inclined to purchase from them again if this functionality is what they intended the usability of the device to be.

[TJ Johnson @ Jan 25th 2008 7:24PM]

Yeah I call BS, also.

I think this is a classic case of, dare I say it, Apple-itis.

"Look how great and wonderful our phones are. Look how better they are from everything else. But oh yeah, we're still at the will of the providers who decide what bloatware they're gonna install to slow the thing down and what drivers to withhold which would speed it up and make the functionality enjoyable like you were expecting. Oh and one more thing, we're not going to tell you about it until you decide to find out for yourself. Sorry, but I gotta run and get back to work on the new phones that have the features you've already wanted but you're gonna have to pay for a few months down the road. Ta-ta...."

[ScOObyDoo @ Jan 25th 2008 7:25PM]

Increase over the air download speeds?

I hope they are referring to the EVDO Rev.A upgrade they promised to release last fall for the Titan (right before they released an upgrade that screwed up your phone).

HTC makes great hardware, but their software and support are downright pathetic. Thank goodness for XDA Developers...

[thabronx31 @ Jan 25th 2008 7:34PM]

This says it all!!!

http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/25/htc-further-responds-to-video-driver-issue-will-improve-future/

[thabronx31 @ Jan 25th 2008 7:37PM]

Sorry, wrong post...

http://www.htc.com/press_room/03-press-070905.htm

[Mark @ Jan 25th 2008 7:37PM]

ya, I'm sure someone at xda will probably make a fix for this soon enough, just like they did for us touch owners that got one before they came out with the htc album and keyboard.

[ALLurGroceries @ Jan 25th 2008 7:55PM]

Not unless they are privvy to ATi documentation that is entirely proprietary, under lock and key, bound by NDAs, if it even exists somewhere accessible to an insider.

[Jeff @ Jan 25th 2008 7:38PM]

HTC needs to do whatever it take to rectify this situation and do right by its customers. And do not charge a fee as the people who bought these phones have already paid for it through being inconvenienced by poor performing products. And that latest reply from you does not give you a get out of jail free card HTC. It gives you an extension on delivering what you should have in the first place. The customers who paid a nice amount of money will hold you accountable. Show and Prove HTC, Show and Prove.

[thabronx31 @ Jan 25th 2008 7:39PM]

sorry wrong post...

http://www.htc.com/press_room/03-press-070905.htm

[DonatoM3 @ Jan 25th 2008 7:39PM]

I don't think they realize that almost everyone that wants these issues fixed would actually be the customers who are most likely to upgrade when HTC says "Ok we know you loved our last device and it's running great for ya, but here's an even better one". You buy from companies you trust to give you the best value for your dollar and one who doesn't isn't one I buy from again.

[patsy @ Jan 25th 2008 9:18PM]

Exactly, but this attitude is typical in the PDA/smartphone world. The manufacturers have always treated these devices more as disposable consumer electronics than the computers they are--and they were certainly helped in this attitude by Microsoft themselves, who never treated WinCE as a proper OS that could be improved and updated on legacy devices. Considering how porky WinCE and PPC eventually got, it's amazing that they could never get some proper hardware abstraction and a good driver model going on that platform. It's pathetic that it took a major revision of the OS (was it 2003SE?) to include support for VGA screens, and each new odd-ball screen configuration required a new OS update, instead of a mere driver revision.

[Dave @ Jan 25th 2008 10:01PM]

@patsy

That's not necessarily true...if you look at M$'s NET CF 3.5 framework update it literally will make your phone 20% faster (if installed correctly). MS isn't (always) as bad as everyone makes them out to be. HTC on the other hand...

[DonatoM3 @ Jan 25th 2008 10:58PM]

Yeah I completely put the blame on HTC here. MS looks like they've been taking their PDA market seriously once phones got involved, and more and more business users use them. Think about all the integrated MS technologies they get to sell to large corporations if Windows Mobile phones are succesfull.

[Daniel @ Jan 25th 2008 7:42PM]

Everyone that bought this product deserves what HTC did to them. If you want a video player get an iphone. Apple is the best company in the world and Microsoft sucks. HDDVD will win, you guys just watch. I wish I could have Steve Job's children, and we can all crowd around our HDDVD copy of Transformers while sitting on a pile of dead Blu-Ray profile 1.0 players.

[NIck @ Jan 25th 2008 8:09PM]

Uhhh....you DO realize that HD-DVD is a Microsoft backed format right? Apple is supporting Blu-Ray. If you're so anti-MS and pro-Apple, shouldn't you be backing the other side?

[Chris S. @ Jan 25th 2008 8:08PM]

Steve Jobs = Pixar = Disney = BluRay.
HD-DVD = Microsoft.

[SimbaDogg @ Jan 25th 2008 8:33PM]

you probably masturbate a lot

[Daniel @ Jan 25th 2008 9:05PM]

lol I just wanted the rise. go blu-ray.

[Jeff @ Jan 26th 2008 11:49AM]

wow these people wouldn't know irony if it gouged their eyes out.

irony (noun)
the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.

[Silenthillnight @ Jan 26th 2008 1:39PM]

Haha, nice, sad how many people got roped into that blatantly obvious joke.

[Daniel @ Jan 26th 2008 2:10PM]

I hate you Daniel! Why would you say that?

[SteveBorough @ Jan 25th 2008 8:03PM]

Forget the analogies already! The main problem is this device PERFORMS WORSE THEN ALL PREVIOUS HTC DEVICES!!! COME THE FEKK ON!!!

[Dave @ Jan 25th 2008 8:07PM]

why HTC wants to lose their most loyal customers is something i will never understand....

[deciBels @ Jan 25th 2008 8:08PM]

"HTC will utilize hardware video acceleration like the ATI Imageon in many upcoming products."

Yea, just without drivers! Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice and shame on me.

[Xultar @ Jan 25th 2008 8:18PM]

That is EXACTLY what the are saying.

[fuzzy @ Jan 25th 2008 8:11PM]

As a current ATT Tilt owner, which I waited for and touted as a total iPhone killer...

This information is really disconcerting.

HTC, you've really lost a customer.

[abmoser @ Jan 28th 2008 10:15AM]

This is exactly my sentiment. why do i have to wait 3 seconds after i slide open the keyboard just to have the screen flip to landscape? now i'm stuck with this phone for the length of my 2 year contract, and when that's up i'll get the new "best phone on the market" and again find out right after my 30 day trial is up and the phone is mine for good that something crucial, which should be there and has no good reason for not being there, is not there.

[kjb434 @ Feb 11th 2008 6:10PM]

^^
3seconds? What the hell are you doing to that phone? My switches real quick.

I think people are pushing these devices way too much and claiming that they suck. If you push it beyond what it was intended, of course performance will suck.

Mine works fine. Video playback, game playback, and general use is quite fine.

[gonzo66 @ Jan 25th 2008 8:14PM]

HTC = Hookers to cash

[Pastry Chef @ Jan 25th 2008 8:22PM]

I feel seriously shafted. I'm never buying anything from these assholes again.

[miro @ Jan 25th 2008 8:25PM]

This is bullshit. I should buy an iPhone now.

[SimbaDogg @ Jan 25th 2008 8:36PM]

Ehh...i wouldn't quite resort to that. I mean, shiet...other than the video issues and the slowness/unresponsiveness of the phone its actually a good piece. I mean, i didn't at all use the standard AT&T OS, and upgraded to some stuff from XDA within 20 minute of first turning it on. But after all the cabs and programs on this phone, i really couldn't be happier, except...how am i supposed to watch the daily show on this phone? video acceleration stinks, my 8125 was honestly much better than this, and that is a POS phone (great when it was new)

[Jeff @ Jan 26th 2008 12:09PM]

@ SimbaDogg

"Ehh...i wouldn't quite resort to that."

er... you just made a pretty convincing argument *FOR* "resorting to that". Most normal people aren't interested in having to spend 6 hours tricking their new phone into not sucking.

[Vic @ Jan 25th 2008 8:36PM]

just canceled 200 order from Att for the 8925 aka tilt. Just a start, they want to insult their customers, then we will vote with our money.