Finnish start-up Jolla yesterday put its first smartphone on general release in Europe and Norway, marking the first time the units are available in the open market.
The company’s smartphone is selling for €399 via an online store, in what chief executive Tomi Pienimäki says is the next phase in the firm’s development. Jolla has previously sold out two pre-order campaigns for the device, which runs Sailfish OS Beta – a development of Nokia’s MeeGo software.
Pienimäki says the firm has overcome supply chain issues with pre-ordered units, meaning they will “shipped by Christmas.” Devices ordered via the online store will begin shipping in January.
The firm is also readying an online feedback and development channel to give users the chance to comment on current and future features, report problems, and submit ideas.
“We launched Jolla with Sailfish OS Beta to put the product in the hands of real customers as soon as possible. We have received a lot of valuable feedback, for example, regarding power management and most wanted features, and we are reacting quickly. We have already released two updates for the OS and are expecting to rapidly improve the capabilities with frequent over the air updates,” Pienimäki explains.