If there’s one thing the new HTC One (M8) taught us over the past couple of months, it’s that it’s almost impossible to keep any device under wraps if you plan to launch it soon after the announcement. So we ask, which strategy is better — secrecy or leaks, availability or delays?

Some companies have been notable for keeping most of their devices secret for a long period of time, until the date of the official announcement or at least a couple of hours before that. Samsung managed to pull that off with the Galaxy S5, and up until the event’s day, we didn’t have any clear idea of what to expect from the device. Did it have an aluminum body or a plastic one? Was it really water-resistant or not? Did Samsung splurge for the 2K screen or was it a 1080p one? Many questions had remained unanswered until someone managed to get their hands on a showfloor device a couple of hours prior to the announcement and shared a few photos.

The same did not happen with the new HTC One (M8). This phone has been leaked over and over, from many sources and countries. We knew the design, spec sheet, features, Duo Camera, prices, availability, colors, press material, ads and more. We had watched several videos of the phone and seen every angle of it. There was not a single surprise during HTC’s announcement, not even when they said it would be available for purchase right away in the U.S.

That, as it turns out, is obviously the reason of the leaks. When a phone has to be packaged and shipped, prepared for marketing and sales, and sent to reviewers and press members, secrecy becomes impossible to maintain. There are bound to be numerous hands handling the phone or the press material, which makes any kind of control over the different valves in the distribution system pointless.

Now there was obviously an upside to HTC’s way of handling things. The One was in the press almost invariably every single day for the past month following the various leaks, ramping up hype and getting famous among even the less savvy of the tech readers and followers. Then, once the announcement was over, no one had to wait for days or months to get it, it was made available immediately in several parts of the world and would be coming soon after to others.

So is HTC onto something big here? Did their approach, while appearing to hurt them with the continuous leaks, eventually pay off with wider awareness, higher excitement and faster availability? And will any of that translate into more sales of the new HTC One?

It’s a question worth asking and one we should be keeping our eyes on for the future. We’ll be watching out for the M8’s sales numbers and hope that HTC won its gamble. It would also be interesting to see if other manufacturers will give this strategy a try. 

But what about you? Which do you prefer, the element of surprise and slightly delayed sales, or multiple leaks and immediate availability? Leave a comment and let us know why.