Plastic HTC One M8 rumored to be in the works

The HTC One M8’s build quality is quite an accomplishment, but such a snazzy design comes with a high price tag. However, if rumors are true, HTC could soon offer an affordable plastic version of its new flagship phone. Perhaps in an effort to compete with Samsung’s new Galaxy S5 or maybe taking its cues from Apple’s iPhone 5c, the Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer is reportedly planning to release a plastic version of the M8 as early as next month.

Aside from its plastic shell, the bargain version of the M8 is said to ship with the same hardware as its high-end counterpart, which includes: a Snapdragon 801 quad-core CPU at 2.3GHz, 1080p display, dual 4-megapixel cameras and Android Kit Kat 4.4.2. The plastic version of the HTC One M8 is rumored to land in China with a price tag of around 3000 yuan (around $482), which is almost half the price of the metal version of the handset. No word if this budget-friendly device will make its way to the US.  

Does the idea of a cheaper M8 sound appealing to you, or do you think HTC should stick to using premium materials for its flagship device?

(via G4games)