Nokia N8 delayed again 'to ensure a great user experience'

We were fully expecting to get hold of the long-awaited Nokia N8 smart phone by the end of this month or 1 October at the latest, but it appears we have to wait another few weeks -- even though the phone's ad campaign is already in full swing.

"The amount of preorders has exceeded our expectations and we are working hard to deliver the Nokia N8 to the market," Nokia said in a statement. "In some markets, we had planned to start delivering the Nokia N8s to our pre-order customers by the end of September. To ensure a great user experience, we've decided to hold the shipments for a few weeks to do some final amends."

It's Nokia's second official delay of the N8. The phone was originally slated to arrive in June, but software renewal took longer than expected, Reuters reported, meaning we would see it at the end of September. But that won't be the case now.

Nokia claims it has seen strong pre-order demand for the new Symbian 3 smart phone, which we seem to have been waiting an eternity for. If you're a regular reader you'll know the specs, but it will come with a 3.5-inch AMOLED touchscreen and rather flash 12-megapixel camera, which'll be able to shoot 720p video.

This means the N8 will probably arrive after the debut of the HTC Desire HD and Z. It's a strange delay, as Nokia has had more than enough time to work on the software and hardware. If we were to take a total stab in the dark, perhaps Nokia wants the N8 to be released after the new Desires, which are due at the beginning of next month, and have already gone buzztacular on the Web.

Why would we suggest that? From what we saw at Nokia World, the Finnish company was absolutely spitting mad with HTC for stealing the thunder -- not to mention journalists -- from the launch of its new phones, the E7, C6-01 and C7. There was some hilarious friction between the two companies, and if you were Nokia management you might be determined HTC wouldn't pee on your parade again.

Think of a major movie moving its release date to avoid clashing with an even bigger blockbuster, one with gallons of Internet buzz. Perhaps Nokia has technical reasons for the delay, but that sounds like trouble -- it isn't convinced it has a surefire hit on its hands and wants another round of focus grouping and a last-minute cut here and there.

The delay may even convince people to hold out for other phones such as the E7, or perhaps even a MeeGo-running N9. Or the worst case scenario for Nokia: go for a new HTC Desire.