Dubai: Whilst pre-orders for the iPhone X just began on Friday, Apple’s UAE website is already showing a wait time of five to six weeks for its new model.
In a statement to Gulf News from Apple, the world’s most valuable public company said that they were “working hard to get this…new product into the hands of every customer who wants one, as quickly as possible.”
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They added that they would continue taking pre-orders on the website, and that their 10th anniversary phone would be available in stores from 8am on Thursday, November 2.
Recent analyst reports have suggested that the production of the California-based company’s flagship phone is behind schedule, stemming from technical issues surrounding the device’s new face authentication feature.
According to a report in the Nikkei Asian Review last week, Apple will ship 20 million devices this year, only half of what it originally anticipated.
Certain models completely sold out
Elsewhere, a spokesperson from local telecoms provider du said that they were completely sold out of the iPhone X online, and would inform customers when fresh stock became available.
The website for etisalat, the UAE’s other telecoms group, is showing the silver 64 GB model, and the space grey 256 GB, as sold out.
The 256 GB silver model, and the 64 GB space grey model, are still in stock for etisalat, according to its website.
A source at the company told Gulf News that as soon as the phone became available for pre-order, it sold out.
“We then got more stock from Apple, but it doesn’t all come at once, so that’s why you’re seeing some models available and some still sold out,” they added.
E-commerce platforms
The company needed to keep some stock for its retail stores, and for its customers entitled to an upgrade, the source said.
Neither du nor etisalat would confirm to Gulf News the date when orders would be dispatched.
For shoppers looking to find the phone on the UAE’s major e-commerce platforms, they may have mixed results.
On e-commerce site Souq, the iPhone X 64 GB is currently available for pre-order, albeit with only a handful left in stock at the time of writing. The 256 GB model, however, is not listed on the site.
Souq says that orders will be delivered by Sunday, November 12.
Recently launched rival Noon.com is not listing any models of the iPhone X.
Apple, which launched its mobile wallet Apple Pay in the UAE last week, is scheduled to release its quarterly results on Thursday, November 2.
