For those of you in the US waiting to get your hands on Nokia’s first (and last) MeeGo phone, the N9 – we’ve got some bad news for you. The folks over at Engadget recently got in touch with Nokia to determine a shipping date for the phone, and they’ve just received the terrible news: the N9 won’t be available in the USA – at least not at launch date, and there’s no confirmation if it will arrive later either. Here’s the reply they got when they asked about the phone’s shipping date:
After the very positive reception to the launch of the Nokia N9, the product is now being rolled out in countries around the world. At this time we will not be making it available in the US. Nokia takes a market by market approach to product rollout, and each country makes its own decisions about which products to introduce from those available. Decisions are based on an assessment of existing and upcoming products that make up Nokia’s extensive product portfolio and the best way in which to address local market opportunities.
With all the excitement that has been raised about the MeeGo phone, this news feels like such a crushing blow. Now users will have to go through the hassle of importing the device from overseas if they want to get an N9. Could Nokia’s reluctance to release the phone in the US be due to the fact that they don’t want it to eat into the sales of Windows Phone devices when they launch? Let’s hope the Finnish company won’t take too long to change its mind about the phone’s availability.
Filed in . Read more about Launch, Meego, N9, Nokia, Release and Usa.