As one of the many consumers who was frustrated at missing the short window for ordering the Nexus 4 before it sold out, I’ve been a bit annoyed at Google’s handling of the Nexus 4 launch, from unclear launch information to lacking stock. Some Nexus 4 buyers have even more reason to be unhappy, however, as Google has now begun sending out emails to quite a few people who bought and paid for the Nexus 4, saying that the device is backordered and won’t be shipping for a number of weeks.
According to Reddit posters and various other Android blogs, the “Order Updates” that Google sent out give an estimated shipping time of three weeks or less, while saying that more information would be provided soon. Since those who ordered were told that the device was in stock and paid for two day shipping, this is sure to be quite disappointing.
This news is also bad for potential Nexus buyers like me, because it means that it will now be even longer before the phone is back up for purchase. If it will take up to three weeks for the Nexus 4 to go out to those who have already paid, I don’t even really want to speculate about how long before it goes back on sale to the public. Of course, for now you can still get the phone at T-Mobile, but it will cost you.
Google did decide to comp early buyers for the two day shipping that they won’t get, but even with that I’d be at least a bit upset if I opened an email that I thought was my tracking number only to find that my order had been significantly delayed. Let’s just hope that Google can get its act together enough that I can finally give them my money sometime in the near future.
[Reddit]
Is this Googles fault or LGs? Has anything similar gone out about the nexus 10? Hoping to pick one of those up soon
Hopefully they’re acting like Amazon – under-promising and over-delivering. Amazon said my Chromebook would arrive until December 7, but it’s on the FedEx truck now. Hopefully Google will get its inventory together and do something similar.
(warning: RANT)
Let me just tell you just how soured I am on Google as a result of this whole Nexus 4 fiasco. I was able to preorder one from Canada at 830am PST on whatever day the preorders opened. An hour later I got an email saying my order had been cancelled due to an invalid address — this is especially odd, because both my Nexus 7 preorder, and its RMA replacement came to this address; it is the only address attached to my Google Play account and I’ve never changed it. So after trying to call the Google Play Store support helpline and being told there was an error with the system by the auto-attendant several times, I finally got through on the sales helpline. After being transferred to the correct department, the agent I spoke to was unwilling to reinstate my order or escalate it to anyone. After an hour and a HALF on the phone with a rep, who put me on hold 5 or 6 times because she kept having to confer with her manager, I was finally able to talk with the manager, who kept telling me that my address was invalid (I’ve got both my PO box and my physical address in line one, because some carriers use physical, and some the post office, and some of them return packages that don’t have the address they use), regardless of my previous shipments received, and that the system had been “updated” and my order was auto-kicked without any staff oversight or intervention (I won’t bother to ask why/how did it get into the system in the first place…). All throughout, their solution was to change my address, go back to the Play Store and reorder, but of course by now the N4 was long since sold out (not that either of them claimed to be aware of this). He finally agreed to escalate to what he called customer service Specialists and to send me an email stating as such, but a couple minutes after he put me on hold to go do this, I was hung up on. Then I got an email from the first agent thanking me for the call, to which I replied asking for the confirmation of escalation. I got a reply that included the boilerplate of their ToS where PO Boxes are not valid addresses. I replied informing them that this did not solve my issue, and received a message back from a different agent, thanking me for the call. Needless to say, I will not be purchasing a Nexus 4, after this egregious, disgusting display of a complete lack of customer care and service.
/rant
Sorry bout dat bro
Almost exactly the same thing happened to me. Entered in a regular and PO box address.
After purchase realised PO boxes weren’t valid, so I contacted them to change the address. They said aslong as we can access to the delivery address just to leave it and do nothing.
So we did this. 1 day later, we get an email that it has been shipped, followed by another that it has been cancelled. Call them to find out; its been cancelled. We have to reorder. But now they are out of stock. Too bad, we miss out. Cant change the address, cant get our item back. Useless idiots! Especially considering Google themselves said that we should just leave it.
I’m not too bummed about the delay because I don’t have the money to buy one yet, at least now I won’t have to see too many happy Nexus 4 users before I get mine