Nokia undoubtably regretted having used the “Beta Test” theme for its initial rollout of the Lumia 900. After all, while the Lumia 900 IS a terrific phone it has had its initial bumps in the road. The biggest issue? Some new Lumia 900 purchasers found that the phone would lose, or never acquire, a data connection. That is a big issue for a smartphone that is all about connectivity. No doubt the executives at Nokia, and Microsoft, executives who have doubled down on this partnership, took a deep breath and did their best to not panic. Then Nokia did something almost unheard of in the current world of business, rather than passing the buck or trying to deny things they took responsibility. As the current Lumia website notes,
A little while after the Lumia 900 went on sale, we discovered a software issue that can sometimes lead to lost data connectivity. This issue is purely in the phone’s software, and isn’t related to the phone hardware or the network itself.
But that was only the beginning. Nokia then went above and beyond with regard to fixing things and offered a huge incentive to all who had, or will, purchase the phone before April 21st.
As they noted,
We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused, and as a gesture of goodwill, we are offering a $100 AT&T bill credit to everyone who has already purchased a Nokia Lumia 900 or who will purchase one before April 21st.
Now, as promised, Nokia has rolled out the fix. We just received the following-
Earlier this week, Nokia communicated about a memory management issue with the recently launched Nokia Lumia 900 at AT&T that, in some cases, was leading to a loss of data connectivity.
When this news was issued on Tuesday, Nokia had identified that a software update would be available for consumer download on or around April 16th. Today, we’d like to share with you that the update is now available. Consumers now have the opportunity to update their AT&T version Nokia Lumia 900 software through Zune and Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac earlier than anticipated.
Consumers are still able to swap out their Lumia 900 for an updated Lumia 900 in an AT&T store if they’d prefer. And, of course, the $100 credit offer will remain in effect through Midnight PST on April 21st.
For additional details, please visit: www.nokiausa.com/lumia900update
Not for nothing, this is the kind of responsiveness that earns a company loyal customers who, before long, are likely to become fans. Good for you Nokia!
It is a great phone from a company that has earned a good deal of respect and loyalty this week!
I agree. While Nokia’s launch and data connection problem were embarrassing, I think they’ve handled the issue exceptionally well. That, and rolling out the update early demonstrate their desire to retain a loyal customer base.