Nokia Says Lumia 900 Software Fix Ready for Download

Nokia said late Friday that it is ready with a software fix for an issue that prevented Internet access for some early Lumia 900 customers.

The Finnish phone maker reiterated that customers can either download and install the patch or exchange their phone at an AT&T store. Nokia had originally said to expect the software update to be ready by Monday.

“Consumers now have the opportunity to update their AT&T version Nokia Lumia 900 software through Zune and Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac earlier than anticipated,” Nokia said in a statement.

All Lumia 900 customers, regardless of whether they have had problems, will get a $100 credit, Nokia U.S. head Chris Weber told AllThingsD earlier this week. Customers that buy or order a Lumia 900 before midnight PT on April 21 will also get the credit.

That effectively makes the device free, for now, since AT&T had been selling it for $99 with a new two-year contract.

Nokia has gotten plaudits for its prompt and generous dealing with the issues. However, the glitches still threaten to diminish the launch of a product seen as key to the ambitions of Nokia and Microsoft to take on the top smartphones and re-establish themselves as serious players in the U.S. market.

The issue was particularly unfortunate given the teaser campaign that Nokia had run, touting that the arrival of the Lumia 900 meant that “the Smartphone Beta Test was over.”