HTC One M8 For Windows Launch Rumors: UK, Europe Soon?

HTC's One M8 for Windows global version has passed certification at WiFi Org, suggesting a launch could be on the horizon for consumers in Europe and the UK, The WinCentral reports.

AndroidOrigin notes that the short period between the device's debut and announcement at major US carriers suggests it could become available in Europe before the end of September.

The battery life of the new Windows Phone variant is better than its Android counterpart, at least according to HTC's specifications, PCWorld reports.

Although the hardware is nearly identical between the devices, the M8 for Windows features 22 hours of 3G talk time, and up to 528 hours of standby on 3G, while the M8 for Android offers 20 hours of 3G talk time and up to 496 hours of standby time on 3G. The difference means the Windows model has a 10 percent boost in talk time and a 6.45 percent advantage in standby time.

While the answer as to why there is such a noteworthy discrepancy isn't exactly clear, PCWorld offers a solid breakdown:

"The natural question is whether Microsoft's Windows Phone OS is more efficient, from a power perspective, than the Android version 4.4.2 (KitKat) that is powering HTC's phone. If so, that might be a selling point for consumers hoping to eke out every last bit of power from their HTC One (M8) phone - and a feather in the cap of Microsoft, which has just 2.5 percent of the world smartphone share, compared with almost 85 percent for Android.

Under the hood, though, there may be another answer: The two versions of the One (M8) may not be truly identical, after all.

Consider the cellular radios the two phones use. HTC's One (M8) for Android supports a number of different frequencies: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz for 2G GSM/GPRS/EDGE networks; 3G WCDMA 850/900/1900/2100 MHz with HSPA+ for Europe, Asia, and the major U.S. carriers; the CDMA frequencies used by Sprint and Verizon; and the 700/800/850/900/1800/1900/2100/2600 MHz LTE frequencies.

The One (M8) for Windows uses the same 2G, 3G, and CDMA bands, but only a subset of the LTE frequencies that the Android version uses: specifically the 700/1700/1800/2600 MHz frequency bands."

No matter the reason, there is one thing you can be sure of - consumers will be attracted by the difference in the Windows model.