Galaxy S4 shortage: UK networks struggle to fulfil pre-orders
Samsung's stock woes continued over the weekend, as UK networks can't find enough Galaxy S4s for those who ordered ahead of time.
Samsung's Galaxy S4 stock woes continue, as UK networks are failing to find enough stock to meet pre-order demand.
Supplies of the 5-inch super-phone are so low that British operators have been unable to send everyone who ordered the S4 a phone, even if they threw down their cash weeks ago.
"We have dispatched phones to customers who pre-ordered, although we still don't have enough to cover all pre-orders," Vodafone told me in a statement. "We're working with Samsung to get more devices as soon as possible."
Moderators on Three's S4 pre-order page meanwhile are telling the same tale of woe. "Our stores had minimal stock to fulfil some pre-orders," one forum mod explained to peeved customers today, "but sadly not all."
"We are getting more stock in this week and hope to fulfil all pre-orders by Friday," the numerical network writes on its site. In a separate statement sent to CNET, Three says it's "Working closely with Samsung".
O2 meanwhile says its stock of the Galaxy S4 is "Still limited".
It's not uncommon for popular phones to sell out quickly once they launch -- indeed, cynics would say that manufacturers deliberately cut stock numbers to ensure their devices are a 'sell-out' success. An inability to provide pre-order customers with phones however suggests that Samsung may not be delivering as many mobiles as networks expected.
In a statement, Samsung told CNET that the stock issues were down to "unprecedented demand".
"Samsung is working hard to ensure that pre-orders and sales across all channels are fulfilled as soon as possible," the South Korean tech giant continued.
Last month HTC confirmed that delays of its HTC One smart phone were down to manufacturing wobbles with the 'Ultrapixel' camera tech.
Are you waiting on an S4 pre-order? Are you struggling to find the phone in stock, or have you already taken delivery? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook wall.
