HTC buys design house to accent smartphone style

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - HTC, maker of the new Google Android G1 smartphone, has bought design consultancy One & Co to tap its fashion expertise in everything from furniture to snowboard boots.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

"We want to keep it as a design consultancy. One & Co has a whole breadth of ideas that could translate to a phone," said Horace Luke, chief innovation officer at Taiwan-based HTC.

One & Co, housed in one of the many converted warehouses in San Francisco's high-tech district, employs designers from around the world to create innovative products such as furniture made of silver-plated timber.

The Android G1 phone went on sale last month in the United States at Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile.

(Reporting by David Lawsky; editing by Richard Chang)