The Facebook Phone Fail
Like Carrie Underwood in the remade Sound of Music Live!, the HTC First smartphone started out as an intriguing concept that attempted to shoehorn something very popular (Facebook) into a familiar vehicle (a smartphone). And like that live television event, it wound up being an undeniable disaster.
The HTC First was the premiere handset launched with Facebook Home, an Android homescreen replacement and the social network’s land grab for smartphone dominance. Had it succeeded, it would have proven that smartphone users wanted Facebook at the heart of their phones.
It also would have buoyed the company’s faltering position in the competitive mobile industry. Instead, the phone wound up being an embarrassment to all companies involved.