It took more than a little doing, but last week we finally got our hands on the big brother to Microsoft’s new Lumia 950 flagship, the Lumia 950 XL. In theory, the 950 XL should have been all the 950 was, and a bag of chips – or, at least, a slightly higher-powered, presumably more capable version of its sibling. Sadly, not only was the 950 XL unable to make up for some of the 950’s shortcomings, but in quite a few areas we found the more heavy-duty smartphone coming up worse; what the heck was going on? It looks like we’re far from alone in our frustrations, as Amazon Germany takes the serious step of halting direct sales.

The site advises shoppers that while they’re free to pick up the Lumia 950 XL from Marketplace sellers, Amazon Germany itself is pressing pause on its own sales, citing issues with product quality. The posted reasoning the site offers is a bit generic, mentioning a product that differs from its stated description.

The prevailing theory behind that notice is that Amazon may have been seeing a flood of product returns, and this is the default response to such an unexpected shopper backlash.

Right now we’re looking to Microsoft in the hopes of seeing the manufacturer acknowledge the litany of Lumia 950 XL issues, from poor battery life to glitchy operation. Will the company voluntary halt sales elsewhere, as it works to redeem the phone somehow? Can a software update arrive quickly enough – and do enough – to make the 950 XL sellable again? For the moment, the phone’s retail debut is still a bit of a mess.

Source: Amazon Germany (Google Translate)
Via: WMPoweruser