Great device or wide distribution? It's a thorny one.
Web reports suggest Nokia will not water down its N900 to support different operators, even if it means some potential partners won't range the handset.
Of course, Nokia has already had its run-ins with the networks over its aggressive push on music, games and apps - even when these services appear to compete with those of its would-be 'customers'.
However, Nokia is also aware that iPhone and Android plough their own furrow and preserve the 'purity' of their devices to consumers' delight.
"Very clearly Apple, Android...are a whole lot less about providing customisation to the operators and a whole lot more about providing a really cool, compelling value proposition to the end-consumer," David Rivas, Nokia's vice president for devices R&D, told Reuters.
The N900 is the first phone to use Nokia's Linux Maemo operating system, and wowed visitors to Nokia World last week with its rich features and friendly UI.
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