Sony is having some difficulties in keeping up with demand for its latest flagship smartphone, the Xperia Z2, and has confirmed that it will indeed delay the launch.
Just recently rumors started to emerge that the Sony Xperia Z2 will not launch on time, but Sony rushed to ensure that its 4K-shooting smartphone powerhouse will hit the market in April, as scheduled.
"We're seeing particularly strong demand for Xperia Z2 across all of our distribution channels," Sonytold the Xperia Blog earlier this month. "As with all of our product launches, global rollout is phased across markets and channels. Consumers will be able to get Xperia Z2 in the UK starting from April," the company added at the time.
The company has now revised its position and has reckoned that its new Sony Xperia Z2 will indeed launch later than expected, with the general release date now pushed back into May in the UK and Europe.
According to a new CNET report, Sony claims that it is doing its best to maximize stock levels of its latest flagship smartphone, but it will likely still not meet the high demand.
"Xperia Z2 will be available in the UK during April and we are expecting to deliver to all consumers who have placed a pre-order through our key partners," a Sony spokesperson said in a new statement, as cited by CNET. "We are working tirelessly to maximize stock levels in April but currently we do not expect to meet the high demand across all our sales channels."
In other words, pre-order customers may get the Sony Xperia Z2 in April as promised, but the general public will likely not see it until May.
Sony did not reveal who its "key partners" are, but the Sony Xperia Z2 is expected to be available from major retailers such as Carphone Warehouse and Phones 4U in the UK, in addition to the major carriers. Vodafone, for instance, had bundled a free 32-inch Sony Bravia TV with Xperia Z2 pre-orders.
CNET further cites a spokesperson for UK retailer Unlocked Mobiles, according to whom Sony has an issue in the supply line. More specifically, the cause of the delay apparently stems from a component manufacturing issue from a third party, which was responsible for making a part of the device.
It remains unclear at this point when exactly the new Sony Xperia Z2 powerhouse will finally hit retail. Moreover, Sony has yet to announce lunch plans for the U.S., but these launch delays in Europe suggests that it may take a while for the handset to reach more markets.
