By Michael Calia
Apple Inc. said Monday that it sold more than four million of
its new iPhone 6 models in the first 24 hours, a figure the company
dubbed a record, while many customers who preordered the device
will have to wait until October to get it.
The demand for the new smartphones exceeded the initial supply,
the company added, and "a significant amount" of the phones would
be delivered to customers Friday and throughout the rest of
September.
Apple also said additional supply will be available to walk-in
customers 8 a.m. local time Friday at its retail stores.
"Customers are encouraged to arrive early or order online from
the Apple Online Store to pick up in-store or receive an estimated
delivery date," the company said.
The models also will be available Friday from T-Mobile, Sprint,
Verizon and AT&T, Apple said. AT&T had said Friday that its
first day of preorders for the new iPhones broke the company's own
iPhone sales record.
Wireless carriers are pursuing iPhone users with aggressive
promotions. Verizon is offering free iPhone 6 devices to customers
who trade in their old iPhone and sign a two-year contract, for
instance, while Sprint is cutting the price of its unlimited data
plan for iPhone 6 users.
As of Friday, Verizon customers had to wait until the end of
October for their preorders, and AT&T customers were told
they'd have to wait until November.
Frenzied preorder periods are nothing new for the iPhone. Two
years ago, when Apple launched iPhone 5, there were indications
that the phone sold out about an hour after preorders started, with
estimated shipping dates getting further out from the original
street date.
-- iPhone 6 Preorder Delays: Weeks Stretch Into Months
-- First Impressions of Apple's iPhone 6
-- Compare: iPhone 6 vs. Galaxy S5 vs. Fire
Write to Michael Calia at michael.calia@wsj.com
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