HTC chimes in on video driver controversy

So there's been a relatively weighty grassroots effort the past few weeks to convince HTC that there's something horribly flawed with its Qualcomm MSM7xxx-based devices -- essentially that video acceleration isn't nearly as well off as it could be because the company isn't taking advantage of the chipset's ATI Imageon circuitry. HTC has weighed in on the hullabaloo today, and in short, the news isn't good for anyone hoping to get a software update out of the deal: "HTC believes the overall value of its devices based on their combination of functionality and connectivity exceeds their ability to play or render high-resolution video. These devices do still provide a rich multimedia experience comparable to that of most smartphones and enable a variety of audio and video file formats," reads the official response, in part. Furthermore, the company has officially confirmed that Imageon drivers are not in use on the affected devices, but that it "plans to include video acceleration hardware in future video-centric devices that will enable high-resolution video support." To be totally fair, HTC never promised Imageon acceleration to begin with -- but it's a shame that we'll apparently be looking at buying new hardware to get it.