With Verizon Wireless having powered up its new 4G LTE (long-term evolution) network on December 5, some of the carrier's recent comments, along with lead-up teasers for the forthcoming Consumer Electronics Show (CES), suggest that handsets for the speedy new network are apparently on the way!

While a December 22-dated report from the Wall Street Journal noted that Verizon COO John Stratton said that an Android-running Motorola handset will be "right there" when Verizon's new 4G smartphones are unveiled, there are now rumors that an HTC 4G handset will also likely be introduced at the January CES.

Already, the Taiwan-based HTC provided the country's first 4G-enabled handset - the HTC Evo 4G - for the Sprint network; as well as the first 4G handset, the myTouch 4G, for the T-Mobile network. As such, it is now being speculated that HTC would probably also outfit Verizon with one of the first 4G handsets.

Substantiating the likelihood of an HTC 4G handset for Verizon network is the square-shaped profile of a smartphone which has recently made its appearance on the HTC website. The smartphone, cloaked in a black cover, has the following words written alongside it: "The first to 4G, again."

Furthermore, a button, which directs fans to a page where they can be alerted to more details about the handset, as and when they emerge, adds: "Find out January 6."