HTC looks set to launch a new smartphone which has a dual-SIM called the HTC Wind.

The device, which also runs Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is also rumoured to have a 4 inch Super LCD touchscreen and is a mid-range smartphone. It has a 1GHz processor and around 512MB of RAM, if the reports are to be believed. It will have 4 GB of on board memory.

While those specifications make the device look a little ordinary it is the dual-SIM functionality that might turn a few heads. A dual-SIM smartphone won’t have many competitors in that mid-range market and the fact that it also runs Android 4.0 means it will stand out.

Dual-SIM is a popular feature for those who don’t want to have a different device for work and their personal life. It is ideal to store information about office information or to send details separately from business and personal accounts. It is also popular for people who share a device and want to keep their information separate. The feature has usually been spotted more often in countries like India and China and hasn’t made a real impact in the UK.

A render purporting to show the new device appeared on a Chinese website, suggesting the HTC Wind might well just launch for the Asian market. It looks a lot like the HTC One S, the dual-core smartphone that launched at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona last month and is the second tier phone in the new HTC One range. If it is strikingly similar in the looks department to the One S then perhaps HTC might feel they don’t need to make more competition for themselves in other markets, leaving the One V as the mid-range device in the product selection.

The One line is set to ship in spring and the One X and the One V have been on sale in China since the start of April.  With this in mind the HTC Wind could be popping up in stores there sooner rather than later.

HTC isn’t the only manufacturer setting its sights on the Chinese market. Not only has Apple put a lot of energy into selling the iPhone there, but also Nokia launched its first Lumia device in the country last month. With a growth in the technology and the consumer market in China it is an ideal ground for manufacturers to find new buyers and look for some growth. It seems unlikely the HTC Wind will head to other markets but it is good to see HTC release dual-SIM phones in its more recent phone range. Swapping devices for work and home can get frustrating, having it all in one sleek device, which this will be if it is part of the One range, would be just the ticket for those fed up of juggling two devices for different modes. Better to just stick with One.