iPhone 6 Breaks Pre-Order Record

More than four million people have pre-ordered the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus within twenty-four hours, Apple has announced.

The enlarged Apple smartphones are due to go on sale on Friday September 19, across 10 countries, with another twenty following the week after, but Apple has warned that a supply shortage could last for weeks.

"Demand for the new iPhones exceeds the initial pre-order supply and while a significant amount will be delivered to customers beginning on Friday and throughout September, many iPhone pre-orders are scheduled to be delivered in October,” the company wrote in a statement.

Apple added that additional supplies would be available at walk-in Apple stores on Friday.

The four million pre-orders of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are double that of the iPhone 5's pre-order numbers within its first 24 hours.

"Pre-orders for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus set a new record for Apple, and we can’t wait to get our best iPhones yet into the hands of customers starting this Friday,” said Apple chief executive Tim Cook.

Both new iPhones feature larger screens than their predecessors, at 4.7in for the iPhone 6 and 5.5in for the iPhone 6 Plus. Each offers a different resolution, with the iPhone 6 displaying a 1334x750 resolution, and the 6 Plus at 1920x1080. Both offer the newest version of Apple's Retina Display technology, called Retina HD, with a wider viewing angle.