Keep an eye on HTC this year.  Not only did they host their own booth at CTIA for the first time ever last week in Vegas, but they've also inked a deal to sell the unlocked Touch Dual smartphone in Best Buy outlets across the US starting in a few months.  HTC's been building quality devices for other companies for awhile now, but this year it seems they're also taking aim at building a brand that consumers will recognize on its own.

That said, the invitations sent out this week to UK journalists are all the more intriguing.  Seems the company is inviting folks to "witness the next wave of HTC innovation" on May 6 in London.  Details on what's coming are all but non-existent at this point, and someone in the know told me it's gonna be big, and at this point it stands to surprise pretty much everyone who's been speculating on the blogs and forums.  Cool - I like surprises.

Guesses?  I've got none for you, but some folks are pointing to two HTC codenames that appeared online a few weeks ago: Diamond and Raphael.  According to Cellpassion, "It is believed that the Diamond will be the successor to HTC Touch, which was launched in June last year, while the Raphael is understood to be the successor to the Tytn II, which was launched in India last week."

More as I find out, though it may not be until HTC tell us themselves on May 6th.