The HTC One is one highly-anticipated smartphone, but it seems the wait continues, as the handset is not yet ready to make its debut.

While the front of the HTC website says "the wait is over" and shows the metal-cased HTC One flagship, things are not quite so simple and the wait is not yet over.

HTC put off the release of the HTC One smartphone once again, reportedly due to problems in sourcing components and metal casings for the handset. In other words, HTC's suppliers failed to pull through. An unnamed HTC executive told The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that it will take a little longer for the flagship to become available because it faces component shortages.

"The company has a problem managing its component suppliers as it has changed its order forecasts drastically and frequently following last year's unexpected slump in shipments ... HTV has had difficulty in securing adequate camera components as it is no longer a tier-one customer," the WSJ reports, citing its source.

"We...are working tirelessly with all of our channel partners to ensure that we can fulfill as many orders as possible," HTC Chief Marketing Officer Benjamin Ho told the WSJ in a statement. "We will start fulfilling pre-orders by the end of March in certain markets and will roll out to more markets as we approach April."

Many see the HTC One as the company's last attempt to regain market share and revive sluggish sales in the increasingly competitive smartphone market. Back in February, the company said the HTC One would be available in March in more than 80 countries worldwide, through more than 185 carriers.

Another delay, however, means it will face even fiercer competition from Samsung's latest Galaxy S4 smartphone, which made its debut last week and is set to hit the market in April. The delay further emphasizes the issues HTC faces, as it is tightly squeezed between the two biggest smartphone manufacturers — Samsung and Apple.

Today's cut-throat smartphone market leaves little room for mishaps, and HTC's biggest bet does not seem to be off to a good start. Talk about the HTC One's specs, features and lots of smartphone comparisons made rounds recently, but the device has yet to make an appearance.

In some way, the whole situation is reminiscent of BlackBerry's case, which put all of its eggs in the BlackBerry 10 basket, only to delay the release several times, each time diminishing the desired effect.