( 4UMF NEWS ) iPhone 5 Sales Set Record:
Apple on Monday said iPhone 5 preorders topped 2 million in 24 hours — more than double the amount of preorders it had for the iPhone 4S.
The company said that because demand exceeds initial supply, some pre-orders will be delivered in October although most will be delivered this Friday.
Phones ordered online today will ship in two to three weeks, according to Apple’s website. And analysts say phones available at retail, starting at 8 a.m. Friday, will probably be sold out by Sunday.
Already, there is a small group of people lining up outside the Fifth Avenue Apple Store in Manhattan in anticipation of being one of the first to snag a phone when it goes on sale at retailers.
Among them is Apple fan Jessica Mellow, 27, who says she has been camping out for iPhone 5 since Thursday. She is a veteran Apple camper, having logged more than two weeks waiting for the iPhone 4s.
“If we just wanted the phone we could have ordered it online,” she said on Monday. “It’s more about camping out. It’s a cool experience. Meeting new people. That’s the best part.”
Apple’s Natalie Kerris says the company is “blown away” by consumer response to the new phone.
And when iPhone 5 goes on sale in stores, analysts predict lines as long as the record queues seen for the iPhone’s debut in 2007.
“It will be a madhouse,” says Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster.
Richard Doherty, an independent tech analyst at Envisioneering Group, says the immediate sellout for the pre-order makes for an “awkward” launch for the new phone.
“Apple expected the pre-orders to be a one-day cycle, and they were shocked that it was just one hour. They clearly were caught by surprise by the size of the orders,” Doherty says. Had they continued fulfilling online orders, “they might have only had two phones available at stores on Friday.”
Phones ordered online won’t be delivered until Oct. 5 at the earliest, according to Apple’s website. And analysts say phones available at retail, starting at 8 a.m. Friday, will probably be sold out by Sunday.
