It's not terribly often that we're here to tell a sob story about a European carrier killing off a hotly-anticipated handset prior to release, but alas, it does seem to happen from time to time. Such is the case here, where O2 first delayed the ASUS-supplied Xda Zinc -- a rather delicious Windows Mobile QWERTY slider, if we do say so ourselves, replete with 3G data -- and now has apparently deep-sixed it entirely, claiming it wasn't up to snuff with its "testing requirements." To be fair, O2's Xda line of Windows Mobile-based devices is deep and wide enough to accommodate nearly any user's needs, Zinc or no, so we're not going to be sending any flowers or cards expressing our condolences. If anything, ASUS might be the one needing consolation here, with the Zinc possibly proving to be a breakout handset for the company in Europe's white-hot smartphone market.

Just when you thought you'd waited long enough, and you were all set to hand over your credit card information for a shiny new XDA Zinc, you'll unfortunately have to gain just a little more interest on that dough and ponder whether or not you'll still be passionate about this thing come March. Although O2 was shooting for a January rollout for the slideout smartphone, interested customers are looking at another 1.5 to 2 months before they can get their palms on one. O2 is touting the XDA Zinc as a Mini S, but "with added 3G power for high speed internet / video calling," and it reportedly sports a QWERTY keyboard, 2.8-inch LCD touchscreen, 320 x 240 resolution, 520MHz PXA270 processor, 64MB of RAM, 128MB of flash ROM, two-megapixel camera, miniSD slot, Bluetooth 2.0, 802.11b/g, and of course, tri-band connectivity. Unfortunately, this well-spec'd device will indeed weigh you down a bit, as it tips the scales at 5.82-ounces and comes in at 2.3-centimeters thick. Still no word on pricing at this point, but just how special this thing will actually be in March remains to be seen.

[Via RegHardware]