O2 to Launch a Smartphone 2003 device in Q4

[Robert Levy]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?contentid=1126' target='_blank'>http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?contentid=1126</a><br /><br /></div>According to Geekzone, O2 sent out an email to many of its customers today:<br /><br />"Thank you for registering at myo2smartphone.com. We would like to update you that we will not be launching the O2 smartphone with the Microsoft Smartphone 2002 operating system. Instead we will be launching the Smartphone 2003 version around the fourth quarter of this year. Thank you for your continuous support."<br /><br />If this is correct, it confirms that we will be seeing the next Smartphone operating system by the end of the year. That's the good news. <br /><br />The bad news is that other carriers may be doing the same thing (skipping Smartphone 2002 and waiting for the next generation) which means that countries where Smartphones are not being sold could stay that way for a few more months.

[spg]

I think that if other carriers do the same thing, and like you say delay the Smartphone from making it to certain countries, it will only be bad news to a very few people. If they did come out with a Smartphone 2002 device now, people would have to upgrade in a few months to stay up-to-date. With IT spending, and general consumer spending down right now, not everyone would have the funds to do that. So, even though there might be a delay, I think there would be more satisfied customers in the end.