My warranty claim finally came to an end today, and I'm happy to say that the Shipito route does indeed work . Here's a few tips...

Set your Shipito mailing preferences before your package arrives at the warehouse. The forwarding process defaults to your selected shipping preference upon delivery at the warehouse. Apparently there is a "manual" process of changing your shipping method after your package has arrived at the warehouse, but that sounds potentially messy...

I found dealing with Nokia USA to be a difficult process. I think the frustration was exacerbated by the exclusive over-the-phone transfer of critical information such as the IMEI, Case ID #, shipping address, tracking number, etc. The accuracy thereof all fairly critical in getting proper results. I mean not even a single email to verify anything let alone an online form or registry of some sort...

I managed to inadvertantly and seriously confuse matters by pronouncing the letter "Z" according to Canadian vernacular of which happened to appear several times throughout my claim. Save yourself some grief and remember it's "Zeeeeeee"... (never thought I'd actually ever run into this ).

Be sure to insist that Nokia USA has your correct telephone number on file. My shipping label sent by Nokia displays the number of the phone that I called from to initiate my claim... a number where I would never be reached.

Best of luck to everyone!

It would have been better all-around if Nokia simply had an interest in taking care of customers.

There is a difference between interest and legally able. In the case of regulated radio equipment and gray market phones sold outside of their approved countries, those two run afoul of each other.

This is true. I'm annoyed that they ended the discussion and didn't offer any solutions at all but, if it's a matter of legal responsibilities, they can't be faulted in this circumstance.

Quite right that we don't really know if this is a licencing issue. The grey area is with Nokia and why they are not selling the N900 in Canada. Only Nokia is privy to this information. It's likely a combination of several factors... a newly hatched AWS network in Canada, lack of competiton in the market and the politics thereof, licencing, business strategy, etc.

What we do know is that American N900 warranties are only vaild in the US, and a significant number of these devices not only exist but are on the rise in Canada. The problem is that Nokia USA isn't prepared to deal with this warranty conflict on a very basic level.

Of course... we cannot reasonably ask Nokia to change their policies, but in lieu of an official explanation - it would be nice if they can at the very least make their call centre staff, both in the US and in Canada, aware of the issue and prepare them for how to best deal with Canadian N900 customers. Do they have an obligation to do this? No...

Nokia Canada are legally able to be better informed, more polite and above all more helpful than they currently appear to be.

Also: what's with this passive acceptance of the status quo? They should be looking to sell this phone in Canada.

Agree. The person I spoke to was polite and persistent, but a language barrier existed and much comedy/frustration ensued passing over the address details etc.

Legal this/that/the other aside, Nokia could easily improve this process with a minimal investment of time and effort.

Out of curiosity I hit Newegg (where I bought my N900) to take another look at their 30-day exchange policy for the device.

I was a little surprised to see that an Extended Warranty is now available for purchase along with the device. Newegg is charging $49.99 for a 1-year plan and $166.99 for a 2-year plan.

The positive aspect is that the Extended Warranty covers "accidental damage" due to handling, which the manufacturer's warranty does not. As such this can offer good value and peace-of-mind, although I'm more inclined to view this as gouging Canadians 50 bucks for the N900's rightful warranty. What a rip-off!

Newegg has the power to handle even a 30-day exchange at the very least. Without any doubt these Canadian customer-returned devices are going back to Newegg in the US, where I'm quite sure they are being processed accordingly. Very interesting indeed...

Yep -- these warranties are rip-offs! I found that StateFarm offers a Personal Articles Policy with no dedcutibles for only 30-40CAD per year!!! for my N900. They cover anything including theft and accidental damage. This sounds more reasonable to me.

Update for interested parties (probably just me ;-) ):
My phone has made it to Nokia's Alabama repair center (via my friend in the US).

Great! Hopefully the turn-around won't be too long...

According to Wind News - "...this phone (N900) won’t be offered by Nokia in Canada".

I'm guessing this crushing news comes from Richard White, Nokia Canada’s GM. Curious to know the rationale behind the decision...