Apple iPhone 5 Breaks 24-Hour Pre-order Record

The next-generation iPhone went on sale on Friday, and within 24 hours had already passed the two-million mark. The device is selling faster than its predecessor did.

The company boasted, "Pre-orders of its iPhone 5 topped two million in just 24 hours, more than double the previous record of one million held by iPhone 4S." Of course, Apple helped assure that it would be able to make that claim by increasing the number of potential customers -- the device wen on sale in?9 countries last week, two more than the iPhone 4S.

Thin on the Board

But there's a downside of this for those who are eager to get this device. According to Apple "Demand for iPhone 5 exceeds the initial supply and while the majority of pre-orders will be delivered to customers on September 21, many are scheduled to be delivered in October."

Specifically, the company says that pre-orders placed today won't ship for 2 - 3 weeks. AT&T says something very similar, noting that it won't be able to ship newly-placed pre-orders for 14 - 21 business days.

Verizon says that units pre-ordered today will ship on Oct. 5.  Sprint is more vague, although not much more encouraging, noting that new pre-orders will ship in about two weeks.

Apple has not given a reason for these delays, other than to imply they are related to very high demand, but industry insiders point to the in-cell screen employed by the iPhone 5. This technology is so new that production is not widespread, limiting the number of displays available.