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EVO LTE shipments are confirmed delayed


S4GRU

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by Robert Herron
Sprint 4G Rollout Updates
Tuesday, May 15, 2012 - 6:59 PM MDT

 

Earlier today, S4GRU.com reported that shipments of the new EVO LTE are being delayed. We took a lot of heat from folks that thought we were full of it. But I had so much faith in my source that I ran the story anyway taking the shots on the chin. Not 100% sure even myself, but knew this source was solid. So I pulled the trigger and hoped it panned out. And now The Verge is reporting the cause of the delay...customs.

Those sneaky bastards at Apple have apparently been able to get customs to hold the EVO LTE and the HTC One X from getting through customs. The grounds for holding the devices are due to them possibly infringing on Apple patents. Supposedly, the hold is indefinite. This may take weeks to resolve. Sprint is now taking down the Pre-Order ability on their site. However, it is possible that if the devices are not found to be in violation, that they make it back into the supply chain with just a few days delay. And it's not known if all are being held, or if some made it through.

According to our internal Sprint source that told us about the delay this morning, Sprint management is meeting first thing tomorrow morning to come up with a mitigation plan and what and how they will communicate this to the public. However, now, and until further notice, Sprint employees are no longer allowed to reference the May 18th launch date.

Sorry folks for being the bearer of bad news. But once again, S4GRU.com broke the story first. We just had it so early, that we didn't know all the details.

 

Source: Internal Sprint Source, The Verge

 

EDIT: Fixed a typo...evidently, deplayed is not a word. Thanks Odell!

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I feel bad for you guys that pre-ordered. This is total BS. There really needs to be some reform when it comes to these ridiculous patents. Back in the day, it use to be ok to reverse engineer something but now it is a bad word that can get you in trouble. Whatever happened to competing on just the quality of your product? I guess that is a forgone conclusion.

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Actually the most surprising thing out of all of these articles is that Customs activities are classified and all customs orders are exempt from the freedom of information act. I find that absolutely fascinating as they argue that it would reveal information and sources in ongoing investigations.

 

 

How they get away with that as a blanket statement boggles my mind.

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good thing I've got a working ICS ROM on my 3D...I can hold out as long as necessary.

 

I think they should investigate the people approving these patent claims of Apple's....they should be forced to recuse themselves if they own an iphone (or an android phone for that matter) and only those with BBs or non-smartphones should be allowed to review patent filings for all things smartphone.

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I disagree with those who say Sprint is not to blame. No offense but you don't put all your eggs in a basket hoping that your biggest release of the year "might" go down smoothly up until the last few minutes? NO ONE can tell me that Sprint just found out that their shipments were going to be stopped last night. Believe me they've know about it but they thought it would have been done and taken care of by now. Now that it's not they are blaming HTC!? They have been lying apparently for weeks now! Telling most customers that their phones have been in the warehouse for weeks and even up until last night everyone who preorders will get them on or before May 18th CSR BS. I can even name specific people who have tracking numbers from UPS with no shipments which just goes to how far these shenanigans got before the ITC screamed CHICKEN! Sprint was playing Russian Roulette with their biggest phone launch of the year and guess what, the gun SHOT!?

 

I blame Sprint 100% and HTC 0% because Sprint dragged this along for weeks, probably months if you look at s4gru.com data on "Risk with Mitigation" on internal Sprint documents regarding the EVO 4G LTE! HTC is simply the phone creator/developer and has nothing to do with Sprint marketing, dates, etc. HTC sends the phones and Sprint sells them and if there was a ruling waiting to be served on HTC's new phones then Sprint should have been aware. But I mean waiting until the last day and then blaming HTC is a joke. Just Monday Sprint said they would be opening stores early for the launch, what a joke! And if they really thought they could pull this off in under a day then I think Sprint has a lot more to be worried over than just a phone launch date. Even if the EVO 4G LTE launch is their most important release of the year that could either save or bankrupt them!?

 

And unless you've been following this situation online you would never know that you can count on not getting your phone for at least another week or later. No, Sprint has STILL NOT released any news, put out an official statement or email to their customers. My contract is up and I was already thinking about switching to Verizon but the new EVO and Unlimited Data were the only two things keeping me here. But it scares me to see Sprints' business sense and then sign up for two more years of service. Knowing Sprint in three months after they get the bulk of original EVO upgrades from two years ago signed to new contracts I could see them playing Russian Roulette again and doing away with unlimited data with some lame reason of no money or some other bullcrap. I can see into the future, lol. With Verizon you pay more but you get quadruple the speed, service and support. Plus the Motorola Razr Maxx has been calling my name for some time now, lol.

I disagree with those who say Sprint is not to blame. No offense but you don't put all your eggs in a basket hoping that your biggest release of the year "might" go down smoothly up until the last few minutes? NO ONE can tell me that Sprint just found out that their shipments were going to be stopped last night. Believe me they've know about it but they thought it would have been done and taken care of by now. Now that it's not they are blaming HTC!? They have been lying apparently for weeks now! Telling most customers that their phones have been in the warehouse for weeks and even up until last night everyone who preorders will get them on or before May 18th CSR BS. I can even name specific people who have tracking numbers from UPS with no shipments which just goes to how far these shenanigans got before the ITC screamed CHICKEN! Sprint was playing Russian Roulette with their biggest phone launch of the year and guess what, the gun SHOT!?

 

I blame Sprint 100% and HTC 0% because Sprint dragged this along for weeks, probably months if you look at s4gru.com data on "Risk with Mitigation" on internal Sprint documents regarding the EVO 4G LTE! HTC is simply the phone creator/developer and has nothing to do with Sprint marketing, dates, etc. HTC sends the phones and Sprint sells them and if there was a ruling waiting to be served on HTC's new phones then Sprint should have been aware. But I mean waiting until the last day and then blaming HTC is a joke. Just Monday Sprint said they would be opening stores early for the launch, what a joke! And if they really thought they could pull this off in under a day then I think Sprint has a lot more to be worried over than just a phone launch date. Even if the EVO 4G LTE launch is their most important release of the year that could either save or bankrupt them!?

 

And unless you've been following this situation online you would never know that you can count on not getting your phone for at least another week or later. No, Sprint has STILL NOT released any news, put out an official statement or email to their customers. My contract is up and I was already thinking about switching to Verizon but the new EVO and Unlimited Data were the only two things keeping me here. But it scares me to see Sprints' business sense and then sign up for two more years of service. Knowing Sprint in three months after they get the bulk of original EVO upgrades from two years ago signed to new contracts I could see them playing Russian Roulette again and doing away with unlimited data with some lame reason of no money or some other bullcrap. I can see into the future, lol. With Verizon you pay more but you get quadruple the speed, service and support. Plus the Motorola Razr Maxx has been calling my name for some time now, lol.

 

5th :(

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I disagree with those who say Sprint is not to blame. No offense but you don't put all your eggs in a basket hoping that your biggest release of the year "might" go down smoothly up until the last few minutes? NO ONE can tell me that Sprint just found out that their shipments were going to be stopped last night. Believe me they've know about it but they thought it would have been done and taken care of by now. Now that it's not they are blaming HTC!? They have been lying apparently for weeks now! Telling most customers that their phones have been in the warehouse for weeks and even up until last night everyone who preorders will get them on or before May 18th CSR BS. I can even name specific people who have tracking numbers from UPS with no shipments which just goes to how far these shenanigans got before the ITC screamed CHICKEN! Sprint was playing Russian Roulette with their biggest phone launch of the year and guess what, the gun SHOT!?I blame Sprint 100% and HTC 0% because Sprint dragged this along for weeks, probably months if you look at s4gru.com data on "Risk with Mitigation" on internal Sprint documents regarding the EVO 4G LTE! HTC is simply the phone creator/developer and has nothing to do with Sprint marketing, dates, etc. HTC sends the phones and Sprint sells them and if there was a ruling waiting to be served on HTC's new phones then Sprint should have been aware. But I mean waiting until the last day and then blaming HTC is a joke. Just Monday Sprint said they would be opening stores early for the launch, what a joke! And if they really thought they could pull this off in under a day then I think Sprint has a lot more to be worried over than just a phone launch date. Even if the EVO 4G LTE launch is their most important release of the year that could either save or bankrupt them!?And unless you've been following this situation online you would never know that you can count on not getting your phone for at least another week or later. No, Sprint has STILL NOT released any news, put out an official statement or email to their customers. My contract is up and I was already thinking about switching to Verizon but the new EVO and Unlimited Data were the only two things keeping me here. But it scares me to see Sprints' business sense and then sign up for two more years of service. Knowing Sprint in three months after they get the bulk of original EVO upgrades from two years ago signed to new contracts I could see them playing Russian Roulette again and doing away with unlimited data with some lame reason of no money or some other bullcrap. I can see into the future, lol. With Verizon you pay more but you get quadruple the speed, service and support. Plus the Motorola Razr Maxx has been calling my name for some time now, lol.I disagree with those who say Sprint is not to blame. No offense but you don't put all your eggs in a basket hoping that your biggest release of the year "might" go down smoothly up until the last few minutes? NO ONE can tell me that Sprint just found out that their shipments were going to be stopped last night. Believe me they've know about it but they thought it would have been done and taken care of by now. Now that it's not they are blaming HTC!? They have been lying apparently for weeks now! Telling most customers that their phones have been in the warehouse for weeks and even up until last night everyone who preorders will get them on or before May 18th CSR BS. I can even name specific people who have tracking numbers from UPS with no shipments which just goes to how far these shenanigans got before the ITC screamed CHICKEN! Sprint was playing Russian Roulette with their biggest phone launch of the year and guess what, the gun SHOT!?I blame Sprint 100% and HTC 0% because Sprint dragged this along for weeks, probably months if you look at s4gru.com data on "Risk with Mitigation" on internal Sprint documents regarding the EVO 4G LTE! HTC is simply the phone creator/developer and has nothing to do with Sprint marketing, dates, etc. HTC sends the phones and Sprint sells them and if there was a ruling waiting to be served on HTC's new phones then Sprint should have been aware. But I mean waiting until the last day and then blaming HTC is a joke. Just Monday Sprint said they would be opening stores early for the launch, what a joke! And if they really thought they could pull this off in under a day then I think Sprint has a lot more to be worried over than just a phone launch date. Even if the EVO 4G LTE launch is their most important release of the year that could either save or bankrupt them!?And unless you've been following this situation online you would never know that you can count on not getting your phone for at least another week or later. No, Sprint has STILL NOT released any news, put out an official statement or email to their customers. My contract is up and I was already thinking about switching to Verizon but the new EVO and Unlimited Data were the only two things keeping me here. But it scares me to see Sprints' business sense and then sign up for two more years of service. Knowing Sprint in three months after they get the bulk of original EVO upgrades from two years ago signed to new contracts I could see them playing Russian Roulette again and doing away with unlimited data with some lame reason of no money or some other bullcrap. I can see into the future, lol. With Verizon you pay more but you get quadruple the speed, service and support. Plus the Motorola Razr Maxx has been calling my name for some time now, lol.5th :(

I agree that Sprint should have done a better job at informing customers of the issue. But I do not agree that Sprint new about it for a long time. Customs were letting HTC one for ATT go through so one would have to believe the same phone under a different name would pass through customs without any hiccups. This was a last minute ploy by Apple to cause problems for Sprint, HTC, and Android. Apple cant stand losing their market to better product.

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My theory is someone at Apple didn't like all this positive publicity of the new HTC phones so they put in a call to someone at Customs and requested them to "check things out".

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From ISN:

  • ‘Pick and Pack’ has now been completed on ALL pre-orders, therefore cancellation of orders is no longer possible.
  • HTC has a judicial hearing scheduled this week, and we should have clearance to ship shortly thereafter.
  • Unofficially, we should be shipping no later than the first of next week, likely sooner.

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From ISN:

  • ‘Pick and Pack’ has now been completed on ALL pre-orders, therefore cancellation of orders is no longer possible.
  • HTC has a judicial hearing scheduled this week, and we should have clearance to ship shortly thereafter.
  • Unofficially, we should be shipping no later than the first of next week, likely sooner.

 

who is ISN?

 

Edit: Never mind. My excitement has apparently made me an idiot.

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Ok, so pre-orders will ship. How about store availability?

 

It says that pre-orders are past the point of no return for cancellation. But they will not be shipping until after the courts authorize it. It sounds like the earliest pre-orders could ship is Friday/Monday. There has been no mention of store sales availability, yet.

 

Robert

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Thanks for the quick response Robert. Does this mean that stores will have no phones at all?

 

I don't know. How and when stores will sell them has not been addressed by official info or even inside Sprint sources, yet.

 

Robert

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Sprint has finally updated their site on the HTC EVO 4G LTE landing page and it points to a forum post:

 

Please read: Important information about the EVO 4G LTE shipping delay.

 

http://community.spr...o-4g-lte-update

 

HTC EVO™ 4G LTE UPDATE

 

 

 

Posted by JGatSprint on May 16, 2012 7:15:11 PM

 

We know many customers have been eager to get the HTC EVO 4G LTE. Unfortunately it has been delayed due to a U.S. Customs review of shipments. HTC is working closely with Customs to secure approval.

 

Here is the most up-to-date information we have regarding the shipping delay of the HTC EVO 4G LTE and how that will affect our customers. We will update this post when additional information is available.

 

To check the status of your pre-order, please visit www.sprint.com/myorder.

 

Official statement from HTC regarding the shipment delay:

 

“The US availability of HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE has been delayed due to a standard U.S. Customs review of shipments that is required after an ITC exclusion order. We believe we are in compliance with the ruling and HTC is working closely with Customs to secure approval. HTC One X and HTC EVO 4G LTE have both received enthusiastic support and we appreciate customers’ patience as we work to get these products into their hands as soon as possible.”

 

Questions we’re hearing from our customers:

 

• When will the HTC EVO 4G LTE be available for purchase?

The U.S. availability of the HTC EVO 4G LTE has been delayed and, unfortunately, HTC hasn’t provided specific timing for product availability at this time. HTC is working to resolve this issue and appreciates your patience as they work to get products into Sprint channels as soon as possible.

 

• When will pre-ordered devices ship?

Delivery of pre-ordered products is on hold, and Sprint will provide customers with a ship date as soon as possible. Sprint will maintain the promise for the pre-order customers that they will be among the first to receive their HTC EVO 4G LTE phones.

 

• How can I cancel my pre-order?

We hope you decide to keep your order. However, if you need to cancel it, you may either refuse delivery, or request a return authorization kit once your device arrives. For a return kit, please call us at 866-789-8292 during the following business hours: Monday to Friday 8:00 am EST to 11:00 pm EST, and Saturday & Sunday 9:00 am EST to 9:00 pm EST.

 

To join other customers in this discussion, please visit our Community.

 

HTC EVO™ 4G LTE - Sprint Announcement

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Also I've been looking at other peoples order forms from Sprint.com and everyone else seemed to pay $200 even, but I payed Florida State Sales Tax of $12.00 making my total $211.99? Did anyone else pay tax? I do live in Florida but as far as I know we don't have an online sales tax rule or anything?

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It looks like HTC loaded a US specific firmware on the One X and the Evo 4G LTE to avoid infringing on crApple's patent. Sucks we all have to wait while HTC convinces the court of this.

 

 

www.theverge.com/2012/5/16/3024889/htc-one-x-evo-4g-lte-custom-android-build-apple-patent-linkify

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Also I've been looking at other peoples order forms from Sprint.com and everyone else seemed to pay $200 even, but I payed Florida State Sales Tax of $12.00 making my total $211.99? Did anyone else pay tax? I do live in Florida but as far as I know we don't have an online sales tax rule or anything?

 

Its just your standard sales tax, based on your address, so it doesn't matter if you bought it online. If you lived in a state that doesn't have a sales tax then it wouldn't have generated a sales tax online.

 

EDIT: like what echo said right after me, it also depends on who you are buying it from as well.

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Also I've been looking at other peoples order forms from Sprint.com and everyone else seemed to pay $200 even, but I payed Florida State Sales Tax of $12.00 making my total $211.99? Did anyone else pay tax? I do live in Florida but as far as I know we don't have an online sales tax rule or anything?

 

You don't have to pay sales tax if the company you purchase from operates outside of Florida. Sprint operates in the State of Florida (with many Sprint stores), so you have to pay taxes on your purchase.

 

Online retailers like Amazon do not have stores in Florida, so you don't have taxes to pay. If you purchased from a retailer that operated in states other then Florida, like the west coast for instance, then they would not have charged you sales tax.

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I don't understand everyone's hate on Apple regarding this. It was not Apple's fault. HTC knew (since December of 2011) that they had until April 2012 to show the ITC that they were not infringing on the patent anymore. But guess what, they never showed proof. So, now that the time period expired, the ITC blocked the phone until they can get proof that they are not infringing anymore. This is all on HTC's shoulders.

 

Here is a fun analogy. Say you want to go to a party on Saturday, but on Monday your mom said that you had to clean your room and show her that it was clean before you can go. You decided not to show her that you cleaned your room and you tried to sneak out of the house on Saturday to go the party. But, your mom caught you and now you are going to be late to the party because your mom wants you to show her that your room is clean.

 

HTC played chicken with the ITC and lost.

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Here is a fun analogy. Say you want to go to a party on Saturday, but on Monday your mom said that you had to clean your room and show her that it was clean before you can go. You decided not to show her that you cleaned your room and you tried to sneak out of the house on Saturday to go the party. But, your mom caught you and now you are going to be late to the party because your mom wants you to show her that your room is clean.HTC played chicken with the ITC and lost.

ummm that's a stupid analogy, it takes a min to show that your room is clean. you don't have to get the mayor or a police officer to come look at your room to see it's clean.sorry.

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ummm that's a stupid analogy, it takes a min to show that your room is clean. you don't have to get the mayor or a police officer to come look at your room to see it's clean.sorry.

 

I said that it is a fun analogy (light hearted). Thanks for your wonderful insight. You will still be late to the party right?

 

HTC had 5 months to prove this and they didn't do it. I love everyone in society blaming everyone but themselves. Is it really Apples fault that HTC couldn't prove they weren't infringing on the patents for the past 5 months? Is it the ITC's fault that HTC didn't show them proof for 5 months? No, it is all HTC's fault for not providing the proof.

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Here's a fun analogy.

 

Let's say you want to go to a party on Saturday, but on Monday, your mom tells you that you have to clean your room and show her it's clean before you can go. You clean your room on Thursday and tell her it's ready to be checked. She doesn't come and check your room until Sunday.

 

Reports are that HTC has been waiting over a month for approval, they did not "play chicken" as you called it and simply try to pass their product through customs without addressing the situation.

 

The hate towards Apple comes from the nature of the patent to begin with, as it's such an obvious function and such a minor addition to the overall package. Part of this blame should also be on the system as well, which allows for such a situation to occur.

 

Restricting things to this level can result in a stifling of advancements as competitors borrow minor ideas from one another and continue to improve upon them. This is bad for us, as consumers because it can slow the development of technologies and improvements into every day items we purchase.

 

I'm all for protecting intellectual property when that property is a true advancement or a significant piece of the puzzle, but not when it's an incidental addition that is so obvious as far as functionality is concerned.

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