Sony Mobile Inadvertently Outs Xperia Z2 With Verizon Branding (Updated)

Sony Mobile’s official Google+ profile has inadvertently posted a promo image featuring a Verizon-branded Sony Xperia Z2 Android smartphone which has since been pulled after being discovered earlier this morning.

This is notable as Sony Mobile had previously indicated that there would be no official carrier release of the Z2 in the US, nor was Sony Mobile considering direct sales through its US sales portal for the time being. Should a Verizon variant of the Z2 indeed be in the planning stages for a future launch, this would make it only the second Sony Mobile CDMA device to be sold on Verizon’s network since the release of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play in 2011.

The Xperia Z2 as currently sold features a 5.2 inch 1080p display, a water resistant bodyshell with IP certification, 16GB of internal memory with microSD expansion, 20.7 megapixel main camera with LED flash running Android KitKat and underpinned by a Snapdragon 801 chipset with 3GB of RAM. Neither Verizon nor Sony Mobile have commented officially on the image or future availability of the Z2 on Verizon.

Update – Sony Mobile is sending the following statement to press regarding the image:

“A mock-up image was mistakenly posted to the Sony Mobile Google+ page. The image has since been removed and we apologize for any confusion this may have caused. For our U.S. customers eager to find out more information about the availability of Xperia Z2, we are excited to share that the device will be coming to the U.S. unlocked this summer.”

While the statement confirms that the phone will be coming to the US this Summer, initial plans called for the phone to be launched exclusively as an unlocked model in the US through the online Sony Store. As this statement does not explicitly deny the existence of a Verizon variant, it also implies that the phone may also see a carrier launch after all.