HTC is set to use an older Qualcomm processor in its mooted One Max tablet, while its rivals roll out an increasing number of devices powered by the vendor’s latest chips, DigiTimes said.

According to the report, the company will use a 1.7GHz quadcore Snapdragon S4 Pro – hardly a slouch. But, contrastingly, rivals are offering devices powered by the latest Snapdragon 800 processors as their flagships in the second half of 2013.

Citing “sources in the supply chain”, two possible reasons were given for the decision. It was suggested that with Sony, LG, Asus, Acer and Xiaomi all picking Snapdragon 800, HTC has been unable to secure sufficient supply of the latest silicon.

Contrastingly, it was said that Qualcomm has already ramped-up production, and that the struggling Taiwanese vendor has purely made its decision based on price.

While the S4 Pro chip will undoubtedly be powerful enough to drive the device, it could affect HTC’s position in terms of bragging rights.