We already know that those of us in the U.S. won't officially see the BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry's new operating system until mid-March, but it looks like anyone holding out for the keyboard-equipped Q10 may have a wait ahead of them that's quite a bit longer. Speaking to the Associated Press, BlackBerry CEO Thorsten Heins has estimated that the BlackBerry Q10 will be released stateside around 8 to 10 weeks after its full-touch Z10 sibling, putting it somewhere around the mid-May to June timeframe. A BlackBerry spokesperson told AllThingsD that the first global carrier launches for the Q10 will happen in April, but the person wouldn't share any details on the U.S.-specific release plans.
It's definitely a bit of a disappointment that the Z10 won't be hitting the U.S. until mid-March, especially since the device is already available in countries like the U.K. Considering that past BlackBerry smartphones have been known for their physical keyboards, though, the Q10's estimated U.S. launch of May or June may be even more of a bummer.
Heins has placed the blame for these delays on the carriers and the testing that they have to put devices through before they're launched, saying that he's "a bit disappointed" about the testing-related holdups but that BlackBerry is working with carriers to speed up the process as much as it can. So far, AT&T, Sprint and Verizon have all announced plans to offer the Q10 here in the U.S., but none of them have offered up a launch timeframe. How many of you passing on the BlackBerry Z10 and waiting for the Q10 and its physical QWERTY?
