WSJ: HTC engineers have been meeting with Google to discuss Nexus 9

HTC is holding an event on October 8th that is expected to yield an action camera, and possibly a selfie-centric handset. There has been further talk that on October 16th, the manufacturer will unveil the Nexus 9. The tablet is expected to offer a 9 inch screen (natch!) and be driven by a Tegra K1 processor. While nothing close to official has been uttered by either firm, the Wall Street Journal is reporting on Monday that the Nexus 9 has given HTC personnel a reason to turn back to tablets, after past failures with the device.

People familiar with Google's plans say that HTC engineers have been meeting with their counterparts at Google in order to design the tablet. The HTC Flyer was such a flop, that in October 2012 HTC said that it was done making slates for the U.S. market. One source said that Google picked HTC for the honor to build the Nexus 9 so as to prevent one company from having a monopoly. The source added that Google has been eyeing HTC for this project since last year, when the HTC One smartphone grabbed solid reviews for its design. And Google was apparently impressed when HTC topped itself with the HTC One (M8) this year.

HTC needs success with the Nexus 9 in order to grab revenue from new products. There are conflicting rumors about an HTC smartwatch in the works for next year. The last Nexus device it built, the Nexus One handset, also kicked off the line and was well-received. While Google wouldn't confirm that HTC is getting the nod to build the Nexus 9, it did hint that it could be built by a company that has gone a few years without being involved in the series. A Google spokesman said, "Android is a vibrant ecosystem, and many of the industry players are doing very well. There’s room for many partners to do well and to innovate with Android."

source: WSJ