Great exaggerations
When HTC announced its three Windows Phone 7 (WP7) handsets last week it said they will be available from late October. When we visited our local Orange shop last weekend, the salesperson said he counting down to 21 October for the arrival of the HTC Mozart.
But HTC has been the victim of a fair few handset delay rumours of late. On WP7 launch day there was widespread muttering that the Desire HD and Desire Z, which HTC had said would be launched in October, may now be delayed until early November.
Then, earlier this week, Focus Taiwan reported HTC's shares were suffering amid rumours that its WP7 handsets - of which there are five - will also be delayed.
We have managed to get a statement from HTC clarifying the latter issue: "Previous reports of an HTC Windows Phone 7 delay are inaccurate," said the HTC spokesperson. "We are excited about the launch of our WP7 smartphones, many of which are beginning to ship this week across Europe. We will be shipping this week with Vodafone, Orange and 02 and are excited about offering this new mobile experience."
And that seems to be that. Both rumours only really concerned delays of a couple of weeks anyway, but HTC will be keen not to let anything interrupt the momentum it has in the smartphone market.
