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Sellouts! Fans snap up iPhone 6 Plus pre-orders to avoid store queues

Wait, didn't this happen last year?

Apple's online shop fell over at midnight, Pacific Time, when it opened for iPhone 6 "pre-orders" – what Apple calls orders for its first shipment of new things.

Also as expected by anyone sane, the first batch of iPhone 6 Plus devices sold out quickly, so any further orders of the larger model are delayed, conveniently heightening a sense of demand for the Nexus 4-alike. This follows the $600bn company's inability to stream a live video from its big iDay launch party.

The 4.7in iPhone 6 can still be ordered from the Apple website for delivery on September 19, when both the 6 and the 6 Plus hit store shelves. If you order an 5.5in iPhone 6 Plus online, prepare to wait at least a month for it to arrive.

Though if you really must get your hands on the phablet before then, you can take your chances and queue up with fellow fanbois on September 19.

This is straight out of Apple's marketing playbook: stock selling out fast and crashing websites to fuel the sense of immense demand and worth.

Throughout the year, some industry sources warned that the phablet iPhone would be delayed due to Cupertino's rumored wish to use sapphire-glass touchscreens, which were proving tricky to manufacturer. Apple never mentioned it would use the toughened display, and in the end the wonder material didn't materialize.

Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus earlier this week at a special event in its hometown of Cupertino. In addition to the larger screens, the new smartphones sport dual-core 1.3Ghz A8 processors using a PowerVR graphics accelerator and 1GB of RAM – it's believed – increased storage capacity and the new iOS 8 firmware with the Apple Pay NFC payment tool.

The company also showed off the Apple Watch, an accessory for the iPhone that will cost more than half of the new iPhone configurations. That one won't be shipping until sometime next year.

Expect the queues to start forming in a week or so. ®

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