While US intelligence agencies are fighting the red menace, the new
Mate 20 and 20 Pro will fall as collateral damage, it seems. Last year, it was the
Mate 10 Pro that started the whole US carrier availability excitement, but the NSA shut down Verizon and AT&T's ideas to include it in their rosters.
Asked whether the new Mate 20 phones will be available on this side of the pond after they already went for pre-order in Europe and Asia, a Huawei spokesperson chimed in with the following:
We are not planning to sell the Mate 20 Series in the US. While international variants of the Mate 20 Series may be available on some US online retail sites, we encourage individuals to carefully read the details about the warranty and network compatibility before purchasing.
In other words, there is a slim chance that the otherwise excellent phones of the world's third-largest handset maker will ever make it on US carriers. That leaves Apple and Samsung to duke it out here, with a little help from LG or Motorola. Bummer.
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Things that are NOT allowed: