This week, Google polished off the last remaining Google Play edition smartphone in its online store, The HTC One (M8). The device has been scrubbed from the “devices” main page, but you can pull up the smartphone with a direct link…only to be welcomed with “HTC One (M8) Google Play edition is no longer available for sale.” Sad trumpet noise.
The HTC One (M8) is really just the last busted float in the sad parade of GPe devices that have been slowly exiting the Google Play store, including the Galaxy s4, the HTC One M7, and the Moto G (1st generation). Looks like either phone makers — like Samsung which ditched the program with the S5 — or Google itself just lost interest in providing pricey, off-contract devices that seem eye-poppingly expensive compared their subsidised cousins.
We’ve reached out to Google for more information regarding the future of its Google Play edition lineup. [Phandroid]