AppleInsider Staff
Both models of the iPhone 4 — in 16GB and 32GB capacities for $199 and $299, respectively, with AT&T contract — now ship within 5 to 7 business days. The 8GB, $99 iPhone 3GS ships within 1 to 2 weeks, while the white iPhone 4 remains unavailable.
The change in shipping times would imply that Apple has begun to catch up with strong consumer demand for the iPhone 4.
Shipping estimates had remained at three weeks or longer since the handset launched in June. In its first three days of availability, the phone sold a record 1.7 million.
But Apple has struggled to meet demand since launch, as supplies for overseas expansion have been constrained. Last month, the iPhone 4 launched in China, and carrier China Unicom was only able to fulfill about half of the preorders placed by customers.
In a similar fashion, Apple could not meet iPad demand for months after the touchscreen tablet launched in April. It took until late August for the Cupertino, Calif., company to improve online order shipping times to 24 hours.
The white iPhone 4 is still listed as unavailable, and Apple has not provided an update on the status of the device since July, when it said the product would not be available until "later this year." The company has said that the white model proved "more challenging to manufacture than expected."
Mike Wuerthele
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30 Comments
The white iPhone 4 is still listed as unavailable, and Apple has not provided an update on the status of the device since July, when it said the product would not be available until "later this year." The company has said that the white model proved "more challenging to manufacture than expected."
Has anyone ever seen a white iPhone4 live? Do they really exist anywhere outside a lab (or in photoshop)?
Good. Now where is that white iPhone.
Has anyone ever seen a white iPhone4 live? Do they really exist anywhere outside a lab (or in photoshop)?
Mossberg had one- link below. It's a bit confounding that Apple was able to release a review unit in white, yet they remain unable to get the thing out to the public so many months later.
http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20100622...phone4-review/
Mossberg had one- link below. It's a bit confounding that Apple was able to release a review unit in white, yet they remain unable to get the thing out to the public so many months later.
http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20100622...phone4-review/
At this point they can't produce the black ones fast enough. When sales of the black ones slow down, baddabing!, bring on the next rush...
I'm not sure this is what they are doing but they are in the very enviable position of being able to play the market as they like.
I finally got an ip4 today. Had an early appointment with a genius re my iMac and to my surprise they had a few in store. Moi, a very happy camper. My G3 had a seriously damaged back, a cracked screen and couldn't be turned off manually after I left it out in the rain!
They hadn't decreased ship times as of last week. I ordered an iPhone on September 23rd. The ship date was set to October 23rd. I waited until September 29 and it hadn't budged, so I canceled and went to the local Apple Store, who had them sitting in stock. They make online customers who have been waiting for a week continue to wait while in-person customers can get one in 5 minutes. Fail.