Of course we don't know how far the N9 could have gone with proper support and promotion instead of being declared a dead OS by Elop himself but the signs were indeed encouraging. It was the first Nokia phone in living memory which excited so much interest and to have gained so much admiration and positive reviews. It has true multitasking and an elegant innovative UI which appealed to users disillusioned with ios and Android. It had real potential of becoming a major player if Nokia had sold in every market. At the very least it would have reduced the bleeding in Nokia.

Users don't look at hardware specs only, they also consider the OS, UI, usability, apps, etc. Nokia was onto a good thing with the N9 but instead of seeing it as a revenue generator Elop saw it as a threat to Lumia.