A high-ranking executive from HTC came forward to defend the company regarding the design similarities between the One A9 and Apple's iPhone 6.
According to the executive, the Cupertino-based tech giant actually copied the design of HTC's latest smartphone model, CNET reported.
The One A9 from HTC was recently unveiled in September of this year. But as soon as images of the device were leaked out, HTC was criticized for patterning the design of its latest handset to that of Apple's previous flagship device.
As pointed out by Pocket Lint, both the iPhone 6 and the One A9 have a similar metal unibody design. The latter even has the unsightly plastic antenna strip running across its back cover just like the Apple handset.
In addition, both devices have protruding rear cameras. However, the camera of the iPhone 6 is located on its left side while that of the One A9 is on the center of its body.
Aside from these, the two models also have rounded edges.
Of course, since Apple released the iPhone 6 a full year before the debut of the One A9, it's safe to say that the former had the drop on the latter in terms of design. But for Jack Tong, HTC North Asia's president, it's actually the other way around.
During a press briefing, Tong maintained that the Taiwanese company had been working on metal unibody handsets since 2013, a year before Apple came out with the iPhone 6. He then added that it was Apple that copied the designs of HTC.
"We're not copying," he said in a statement according to Want China Times. "We made a unibody metal-clad phone in 2013. It's Apple that copies us in terms of the antenna design on the back."
The executive then went on to say that the One A9 was developed based on the improvements made by the company on its previous handset models.
"The A9 is made thinner and more lightweight than our previous metal-clad phones," he said. "This is a change and evolution, and we're not copying."
Jeff Gordon, the senior global online communications manager for HTC supported Tong's statements and even accused Apple of imitating the designs of the company's previous handset to come up with the look of the iPhone 6.
"Take an M7 (2013), combine with Desire 816 (2013), and what do you get? iPhone 6 (2014)," he tweeted. "But really, we're flattered."
Apple, on the other hand, has not yet released a statement responding to HTC's claims.
