Nokia N97 Mini and Sony Ericsson X2 pulled by operators
N97 Mini dropped by Orange; Vodafone shelves release of X2 after software issues
Orange has dropped the Nokia N97 Mini from its devices portfolio after high returns, according to industry sources.
Meanwhile, Vodafone has pulled the UK launch of the Sony Ericsson X2.
The X2's problems will come as yet another blow to Sony Ericsson, which last month saw its newly launched Satio dropped by Carphone Warehouse after software glitches prompted high returns.
Orange declined to discuss why it had stopped stocking the N97 Mini. A spokesman told Mobile: 'We can confirm that Orange UK will no longer continue to stock the N97 Mini as part of its existing handset portfolio. We remain committed to supporting the device for existing customers and look forward to working with Nokia in the future.'
One industry source told Mobile: 'The returns rate on the device was quite high.
It was because of a lot of different issues, not just software problems. It was failing Orange's ongoing tests, which are quite rigorous.'
In December, Sony Ericsson confirmed it was delaying the launch of the X2 until early January on the official Experia blog. It stated: 'The software worked fine but when we started integrating it with some of the network specific apps, it threw up a few issues that we're working to fix.'
A Sony Ericsson spokesman confirmed that the X2 will not be released by Vodafone in the UK. He added: 'The delivery date of the product has slipped due to extended testing and the product, which was exclusive to Vodafone in the UK, no longer fits within their planned portfolio.'
A Vodafone spokeswoman said: 'The X2 launch date for the pre-Christmas period was significantly delayed due to a series of technical issues, so it no longer fits with our planned portfolio for this quarter.'