Pre-Order

A document has surfaced on the French site NWE that could point to a summer iPhone 5S release. The details are found in an internal carrier publication purportedly circulated to sales staff at the Japanese carrier KDDI. Assuming the document is authentic, Apple will announce the iPhone 5S in June followed by a July release, with pre-orders coming on June 20.

The leaked information doesn't stop there, however. Employees are briefed on the differences between the iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S, with several new features highlighted. The 5S will include a 13 megapixel camera, built-in fingerprint authentication and iOS 7. These items have all been rumored by analysts and from leaks in the component supply chain.

Can you hear it? That's the stampede of iPhone fans running to get in line at the Apple store in September. With the deluge of rumors and parts leaks it's not hard to believe that Apple will announce the next iPhone in September. More information has surfaced regarding the press event.

According to iMore, Apple will not only announce the sixth generation iPhone on September 12, but pre-orders will go live that day as well. That means iPhone 5 pre-ordering will commence just 4 weeks from Wednesday, in less than a month. Mark your calendars!

Apple opened an online store in mainland China this week and it took only 10 hours to sell out of their entire inventory of iPhone 4 units. The country has four Apple Stores and iPhone buyers have waited in long lines since the release of the device in September. iPhone buyers were clearly enthusiastic about purchasing the phone online, although some reports have indicated many of the phones may have gone to scalpers who will resell for a profit.

iPhones have been in China for some time on the grey market, with millions imported from other countries. There's also a booming market in counterfeit and iPhone look-alike mobile devices as well. Despite this, the official product had no problem selling online or at retail stores, with over a quarter million units sold on launch day at the end of September.

Apple says the white iPhone 4 will hit stores at the end of July. Unfortunately, reports of production issues are making the date sound less likely. Even if the white iPhone 4 does hit stores or pre-ordering commences this month, quantities are going to be limited due to pent-up demand and slow manufacturing.

The glass back featured on the iPhone 4 as well as the white bezel design may be causing Apple more headaches than it had bargained for thanks to a difficult manufacturing process and high standards for the finished product. Chinese supplier Lens Technology is having trouble getting the right level of paint thickness and opacity for Apple's specifications.

Apple fans who expected to get their hands on the iPhone 4 next Thursday may end up disappointed. The system crashes caused by 600,000 pre-orders have resulted in inconsistent confirmation emails as AT&T's pre-order system remains temporarily closed for business.

Apple now lists the iPhone 4 as shipping July 14, almost three weeks after launch day. Best Buy has suspended pre-ordering and has warned customers with a pre-order that they are not guaranteed an iPhone 4 on launch day. Instead, the pre-order will put them in a queue to receive their devices as soon as inventories are replenished after June 24.

Well, that didn't take long. Only hours into the iPhone 4 pre-order period, US pre-ordering is down. Whether you're attempting to pre-order through Apple or AT&T, for the time being, you're likely to find yourself unable to complete the process. What's the reason? Overload. As has happened multiple times in the past, either Apple, AT&T or both, underestimated the technical requirements necessary to handle demand for the iPhone.

Many of you who have recently tried the Apple Online Store route have like found yourselves staring at a spinning cursor as the Apple store attempts to contact AT&T to determine your eligibility for an iPhone upgrade, which in turn determines the price that you'll be charged to complete your pre-order. Unfortunately, after what seems an eternity of staring at that spinning cursor, most are met with the message seen above, which apologetically informs you that "Your request couldn’t be processed. We’re sorry, but there was an error processing your request. Please try again later."

Apple officially takes pre-orders for the iPhone 4 tomorrow, June 15. The device will ship on June 24 with iOS 4 and redesigned hardware. Pricing with a two-year AT&T Wireless service contract comes in at $199 for the 16GB model and $299 for 32GB. It's also possible to purchase the iPhone 4 without a contract but this adds $400 to the price.

Pre-ordering will begin tomorrow in four countries, with 18 additional countries following in July. iPhone 4 can be pre-ordered from Apple Stores, Best Buy and Radio Shack. Pre-ordering will also be available online from Apple and AT&T. In addition to these locations, Wal-Mart will carry the iPhone 4 on launch day, June 24.

Apple will make the iPhone 4 available for pre-order in five countries on June 15. The device ships on Thursday, June 24.

The first five countries to get the iPhone 4 will be France, Germany, Japan, the UK and the US.

US pricing with a two-year AT&T Wireless contract comes in at $199 for the 16 GB iPhone 4 and $299 for the 32 GB iPhone 4.

In July, the iPhone 4 will ship to 18 additional countries:

Australia
Austria
Belgium
Canada
Denmark
Finland
Hong Kong
Ireland
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Norway
New Zealand
Singapore
South Korea
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland

No more waiting in line. The iPhone 3GS is now available for pre-order online ahead of the June 19th release date. Apple and AT&T have indicated pre-orders will be delivered on June 19th (yes, delivered, not shipped).

For new subscribers to AT&T and qualifying customers, the 16GB model is priced at $199 and the 32GB iPhone 3GS is $299. Purchase requires a two-year service contract and an iPhone data plan. Owners of earlier model iPhones and other AT&T customers can check their upgrade status before purchasing the iPhone 3GS.