Sony finally confirmed a U.S. launch for its new Xperia Z2 flagship, but it will not happen anytime soon, as it will not arrive until July.

The latest Sony Xperia Z2 is a real powerhouse that can easily compete with any high-end flagship smartphone currently available on the market, but it remains to be seen whether customers will still be interested in it after this extended delay.

The smartphone has had availability issues pretty much from the very beginning, as Sony seems to have misestimated demand. The company started taking pre-orders for the Xperia Z2 in the UK, but then pulled pre-orders because it faced overwhelming demand. Things have improved in the meantime and Sony has put the smartphone back on pre-order in the country.

The handset went on pre-order in Canada as well, but so far there was no word on the U.S. launch. Sony has finally confirmed to Tech Crunch that its Xperia Z2 will hit the U.S. in the summer, in July, but has provided no specific date. While the Sony Xperia Z2 has stirred plenty of interest worldwide upon its announcement, many potential customers generally lose interest if they have to wait a few months to get it.

Adding up to the bad news, Sony has not finalized any agreements with carriers, TechCrunch further reports. This means that it remains unclear at this point just which carrier(s) will be offering the device. What is for certain is that Sony will be selling the Xperia Z2 through its online store, but will be offering it unlocked and contract-free. While this option is favored by those who prefer not to commit to lengthy carrier agreements, others find it quite difficult or undesirable to pay a small fortune for the smartphone outright, at full retail price.

At the same time, Sony has not seen great success on the U.S. mobile scene, which doesn't make it easier with the carriers. T-Mobile is the only major carrier to have collaborated with Sony when it launched the Xperia Z1S, so it remains to be seen which carriers will jump on board now. If no carriers offer the smartphone and it will only be available for full retail price, after all this delay until the summer, Sony will likely lose most of the customers that may currently be interested in the device.

The Sony Xperia Z2 has been available in select Asian markets since March, while the UK and Canada will get it in May. The U.S. is at the bottom of the list with a late launch in the summer and it will be interesting to see how Sony will handle everything and which operators will ultimately offer the handset. If you've been thinking about buying a brand new Sony Xperia Z2, do you still want to get it knowing that you have to wait until July? Drop by our comment section below and let us know what you think of this whole situation.