HTC has admitted its latest flagship smartphone will be delayed in UK amid supply issues.
The HTC One was well received after its announcement last month, with tech sites praising its high quality metal construction, excellent screen and risky 4MP 'Ultrapixel' camera.
But while the struggling Taiwanese manufacturer had planned to release the phone on Friday, it now says it will not reach most stores until late March or early April.
That could prove critical with the imminent announcement by Samsung of its own new flagship device, the Galaxy S4, on Thursday.
Customers due an upgrade will now have the opportunity to assess the Samsung GS4 and the HTC One side-by-side when they make their purchasing decision.
HTC said in a statement:
"We will start fulfilling pre-orders by the end of March in certain markets and will roll out product to more markets as we approach April."
Reviews of the HTC One have been hitting the web this week, with most in general praising the device's industrial design and HTC sense software based on Android 4.2.
But as ever with Android phones the market moves quickly, and all eyes are now on Samsung to deliver a market-leading device as it did in 2012 with the Galaxy S3.