Whether it’s chewed by a dog or dropped in a toilet, HTC will replace your One M9 for free

What’s the deal?

An extension of last year’s HTC Advantage program (which offered cracked screen replacements on One M8s within 6 months of purchase), the "Uh Oh Program" shows both the extent to which HTC will go to entice customers away from alternative hand-candy, and that smartphone purchases are now about much more than just the product.

Will it be enough to win the smartphone war in the UK? Well… not exactly – the "Uh Oh Program" is only available to US customers. Boo.

American M9-ers will simply have to call a freephone number, verify the device, and a replacement will be sent overnight, complete with return envelope for the old handset. Though HTC cited more extreme examples of screen destruction and water intrusion, the damage can be as light as a scratch or as devastating as a total meltdown.

Call us old-fashioned, but us Brits might feel a little hard done by. Of course, it’ll have a lot to do with dull phrases like ‘economies of scale’, but with HTC’s UK market share far from secure, HTC must be hoping that we’ll all be too busy preparing for April Fools Day when the M9 hits shelves on March 31st to notice the program’s absence on British shores.

Unveiling the One M9 officially at a press conference in Barcelona on March 1st, the company confirmed the sim-free price will be around £580, with Vodafone offering the handset for £19 upfront on a £43.50 monthly contract for 24 months with 4GB of 4G data.

With Samsung’s Galaxy S6 announced earlier this year at MWC 2015, and the LG G4 expected in a few months, it’s still far from certain who will win the latest smartphone war. Will the "Uh Oh Program" help HTC in the USA? Only time will tell.

[CNET]