HTC M8 Release Date Approaches As Purportedly Leaked Photos Portray The One Follow-Up, Along With Rumored Specs

The Russian mobile website mobiltelefon.ru has released what it calls “leaked” photos of the upcoming follow-up to the HTC One. The flagship is code-named the HTC One M8, and possibly called the HTC One 2 or HTC One + (Plus).

The photos, purportedly showing a graphite version of the HTC M8 lying on a metal table, show only the front of the smartphone. If they are real, they may confirm earlier rumors that the HTC M8 will feature on-screen navigation buttons, eschewing the capacitive buttons found on the HTC One. On-screen buttons can be minimized in Android 4.4.2 KitKat, allowing for greater screen real estate.

Earlier “leaked” photos of the HTC M8 showed that the flagship will feature BoomSound stereo speakers similar to those found on the HTC One. It is rumored that HTC will incorporate fingerprint-reader technology into the HTC M8, along with dual LED flash such as that found on the iPhone 5s, and possibly even dual camera sensors to create a Lytro effect where a photo’s zoom can be adjusted after it is taken.

Twitter handle @evleaks, which posts information, pictures and specifications, or specs, of smartphones before they are officially released, said over the weekend that HTC will likely release the M8 at an event in New York City sometime near the end of March. A judge last year let it slip in a ruling that HTC would release a new flagship device sometime in February or March.

The HTC M8 is rumored to spec a 5-inch, full-HD 1080p display, a quad-core Snapdragon 800 chipset, 2GB of RAM and dual 5-megapixel cameras, along with Android 4.4.2 KitKat. Evleaks also reported in January that a “mini” version of the HTC M8 is on the way.

HTC Chairman Cher Wang said in an interview with Bloomberg that the company would likely introduce a wearable product sometime in 2014, saying the firm had finally been able to solve “customer-centric” issues like “battery problems and LCD” lighting issues.

Follow reporter Thomas Halleck on Twitter @tommylikey