Just about all of the new handsets launched this week include pentaband radios for data, covering both T-Mobile (1700Mhz) and AT&T (1900MHZ). This should take care of carrier incompatibility going forward...

Of course, this still doesn't cover the issue of the carriers themselves. Here in the US, both AT&T and T-Mobile love to eviscerate the default firmware in their devices... check out the mess AT&T made with the E71x, look at T-Mobile's locked-down Nuron (5230)... and I won't even bring up their CDMA atrocities on Verizon. Add to that the expectation that phones are sold locked on subsidies/contracts, and it's no wonder Nokia phones are rarely seen here.

The way I see it, there's 2 solutions: either the US consumer wakes up to the fact that an unsubsidized, unlocked device is a better deal in the long run (fat chance), or Nokia needs to cut some wicked deals with carriers to bring devices to market with as little modification as possible and at competitive price points. Seeing as the T-Mobile E73 came through mostly unscathed, I have some hope.