The BlackBerry KEYone is already facing shortages in the US

If you managed to purchase the TCL-made BlackBerry KEYone in the US when the phone finally went on sale Wednesday, you might want to consider yourself lucky. The unlocked phone, which costs $549.99, is already sold out on Amazon and Best Buy’s websites in the US, in both of its carrier variants (one works with AT&T and T-Mobile’s network, while the other works with Verizon Wireless).

If you really, really want the KEYone right now, your best bet at the moment is to see if your local Best Buy might have the phone in stock, but that’s a long shot. In a series of Twitter posts on Wednesday, Steve Cistulli, the president of TCL Communication North America, admitted that at the moment “demand has been extremely high” for the KEYone. He added that his company is “working closely with our retail partners, ensuring additional stock is available ASAP so they can fulfill customer orders”. Cistulli did not state just how many units of the KEYone were available to purchase in the US when the phone first went on sale. Sprint plans to sell its own version of the KEYone later this summer.

It looks like the demand for the phone in BlackBerry’s home country of Canada is also high. Local carriers like Rogers, Bell, Bell MTS, SaskTel, and Telus started selling the KEYone as well on Wednesday, for $199 with a two year contract or for $699.99 with no contract. Cistulli previously stated that the KEYone was the most pre-ordered BlackBerry device ever from Rogers. The unlocked KEYone will go on sale in Canada later in June for $729.