For those who got the N9 from Handtec to US (California), I have few questions.
- How much time it took from placing a order to receiving it?
- What is the final price after including taxes and shipment charges?
Thinking of getting it through a friend in US who is coming back to India (on 25th Nov 2011). As import/custom taxes in India are high.

And now I have my new Swedish N9 64Gb to replace the sadly broken Handtec unit. And it works great. None of the issues I had on the previous unit. I am happy again.

:-)

>Usually mobile phones have seals on the boxes don't they?

Mine did. A seal with a hologram.

so this thread has not been updated since 18 nov 2011. is the stock coming from handtec now good to go? i've just ordered a black 16gb and don't want to run into the issues that date back to oct last yr

Yes the new stock is great (my replacement was from Poland) and has been working well since I received it. Props to Handtec for professional and rapid support, and a timely replacement.
I imagine that they were as annoyed with the duff batch as we were!

good to hear that news always found handtec better than most to deal with

Recently ordered a 64G N9 from Handtec. Arrived DOA but was the Austrian version. Box was also unsealed and seemed as the plastic cover for the phone had clearly been opened. So guessing it was a return at some point.

Not happy, but seeing as it was DOA It was definitely going back.

My replacement from Poland also good, no creaking either like 2nd unit.

100% agree with vitaminj.
Things will go wrong from time to time, retailer's fault or otherwise. It's how they deal in resolving it that speaks volumes. And even though it was 3rd time lucky for me, I was so impressed with the consistent professional level of service I received from Handtec that I plan on providing them a testimonial. They're now my 1st choice for phone bits and pieces, even if they don't end up being the very cheapest for any future purchases. I am more than happy to pay a little extra for peace of mind.