Apple receives record pre-orders for new iPhones

APPLE said it received a record 4m first-day pre-orders of its new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, meaning many customers will have to wait until October for their new phones.

Apple said a significant number of orders will be delivered to customers as of Friday, but many will be shipped in October as demand outstrips supply.

The first-day pre-orders for the new iPhones, which feature larger screens, were double the 2m orders for iPhone 5 models in 2012.

“We attribute this (pre-order numbers) to the large pent-up demand for larger screens on the iPhone …,” Janney Capital Markets analysts wrote in a note.

The brokerage raised its unit sales estimate for the latest iPhones to 37.4m for the fourth quarter and 60m for the first quarter.

While Apple did not break out first-day pre-orders for iPhone 5Ss and 5Cs launched last year, it sold 9m of those phones in the first three days in stores as China joined the list of launch countries for the first time.

The company said the new iPhone models will be available to customers in its stores in the United States, Canada, Australia and some other countries on Friday morning.

AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile US and Verizon Wireless and some Apple authorised resellers will also start selling the phones on Friday.

Apple’s website showed last week that the larger 5.5-inch “Plus” models displayed a wait time of up to a month. The 4.7-inch version was available for delivery on Friday.

The company routinely grapples with iPhone supply constraints, particularly in years that involve a smartphone re-design.

Apple’s shares were up less than 1 per cent at $101.94 on Monday.

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