It’s not HTC’s fault.
When i look at all the options of ‘smartphone upgrading’ through ATT, all i get are lists on lists of iphones, new and reconditioned, at with a $xxx.xx price tag, to boot.
That’s why I have an iPhone 6 (64 GB Space Gray). I want a phone with the biggest ecosystem of hardware and software support, and the iPhone is just about the best out there. Android would be there but the fragmentation of the phone operating system, especially with the use of third-party “skins,” makes most Android phones obsolete within a couple of years of buying the phone.
You’ve got a choice, you can pay for your phone outright, or you can pay even more for it monthly with ‘free’ upgrades.
Gotta say, smartest choice I ever made was switching to the Nexus line and cutting the line of ‘free upgrades’ - cell phone bill went down over $60 a month. That and when there’s an issue, my phone is usually updated within days, vs most likely never on Samsung and within 180 days on HTC.
You can pick up a Nexus 5 for under $200 off contract if you hunt carefully.