Google's New Nexus Devices Are A Sell-Out

Google has launched its new Nexus 4 - but some customers in the UK were left disappointed when they were not able to get their hands on the smartphone.

The Nexus 4 went on sale in Europe and Australia alongside the new Nexus 10 and upgraded Nexus 7 tablets.

Numerous posts on Twitter suggested the Nexus 4 had sold out within 30 minutes in the UK, and the Google Play store confirmed neither the 8GB nor the 16GB versions was in stock.

Instead, it advised people to register their interest in the phone, saying: "Coming soon. Sign up to be notified by email when Nexus 4 becomes available."

In contrast, the revamped Nexus 7, which is made by Asus and now offers the 3G connectivity that was lacking on earlier models, was still in stock as of 1pm on Tuesday.

The 16GB version of the Nexus 10, which is made by Samsung, was still in stock, while no more units of the more expensive 32GB version were available.

Some prospective Nexus 4 customers were left disgruntled, claiming Google had deliberately understocked the device. They suggested this had been done to generate hype about the new phone.

Others took to Twitter and other social media sites to say they had waited up specially to order the phone, but ran into problems when they tried to order on Google Play.

"Waiting up all night and all morning, adding to basket and trying to add delivery address, all for nothing," complained one user.

The Nexus 4, which was designed and made for Google by LG, is the company's fourth Nexus-branded Android smartphone.

It is equipped with a 1.5 GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, 2GB of RAM, a front facing 1.3 megapixel camera and an 8 megapixel rear camera.

The 8GB version costs £239, while the 16GB phone goes for £279.

A Google spokesman confirmed that the firm is out of stock but is pledging to make devices available again on Play "as soon as we can".