HTC To Release New Phone That Looks Like HTC 10 Minus The Headphone Jack Just Like The iPhone 7

Earlier this week, HTC announced its new Desire line of Android smartphones, and now the Taiwanese company is rumored to be releasing a new phone later this year. The new handset is believed to be called the HTC Bolt, and an alleged leaked photo shows that it will not come with a headphone jack.

The alleged leaked photo of the HTC Bolt was posted by Evan Blass (@evleaks) on Twitter showing the handset’s silver color option. The device looks very similar to the HTC 10 with the rear camera placed on the center and it also has the same antenna lines.

There are some noticeable differences though, like the front camera being placed on the left side of the earpiece while the sensors populate the other. At the back, the dual-LED flash is also positioned above the camera module instead of being placed on the right side. There also appears to be two SIM card slots on the left edge of the HTC Bolt.

The most talked about difference, however, is the absence of the 3.5mm headphone jack anywhere on the device based on the photo. On the HTC 10, the headphone jack is located on the top edge. In Blass’ photo of the HTC Bolt, the handset’s top edge doesn’t have a recessed area for the headphone jack.

When Apple announced the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, a lot of people took notice of the removal of the headphone jack. Apple believes that the future is wireless and that it took "courage" to remove the analog port.

If Blass’ photo is accurate, HTC may have its sights set on a similar goal. Although the headphone jack is nowhere to be found, it does look like the HTC Bolt will come with a USB Type-C port on the bottom edge. Like Apple’s proprietary Lightning port, USB-C is universal which would let users charge their device or plug in USB-C headphones.

For users who might be worried about the removal of the headphone jack for the HTC Bolt, it will most likely come with a USB-C to 3.5mm headphone jack dongle. Lenovo did the exact same thing for the Moto Z this past summer. Apple also provided an adapter for the iPhone 7 as well.

Other than the leaked photo, there's no information yet on the handset's other specs. HTC hasn’t officially announced the Bolt just yet, but some people are already speculating that it will be unveiled on Oct. 18, the same date shown on the device’s leaked photo, according to The Verge.