Despite all the excitement the Nokia N9 has generated on this side of the pond, Nokia is not bringing its MeeGo smartphone to America. Engadget caught wind of this surprising move by the Finnish company when it tried to confirm an U.S. ship date for the N9 but received the following statement instead:
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.”
Reading between the lines, it seems the N9 could be excluded from Nokia’s American lineup because the Nokia ‘Sea Ray’ running Windows Phone 7 Mango is set to launch some time this fall. Leaked photos and videos of ‘Sea Ray’ already demonstrate the physical similarities between the two Nokia devices, so Nokia may be keeping the N9 from these shores in fear of cannibalizing sales and confusing consumers.
But it’s not just Americans who won’t be able to pickup a N9 from a local carrier retail store. According to The Inquirer, the U.K. also isn’t getting the N9, which begs the question: just which country will Nokia be selling the MeeGo phone?
[Source: Engadget and The Inquirer via BoingBoing]
Related:
- The Seattle Times: Nokia “Sea Ray” out for mobile speed testing?
- Sneak peek at Nokia’s first Windows Phone 7: Looks just like the N9
- New video emerges of Nokia ‘Sea Ray’ running Windows Phone
- Nokia N9 MeeGo device looks slick, but does anyone even care?
- Tap and play music with Nokia’s NFC-embedded gear
- Gallery - Nokia N9
- CNET Asia Crave Blog: Nokia N9 hands-on
