iPhone 5 shatters 4S record with 2m pre-orders

Apple’s iPhone 5 has garnered more than two million pre-orders in just 24 hours of going on sale.

The number of pre-orders has smashed the previous iPhone sales record of one million held by the 4S.

Apple said that demand had exceeded initial supply for the iPhone 5, and whilst a “majority” of the smartphones would be delivered on September 21st, a number of deliveries had been scheduled for October instead.

“iPhone 5 pre-orders have shattered the previous record held by iPhone 4S and the customer response to iPhone 5 has been phenomenal,” said Apple senior VP of worldwide marketing Philip Schiller.

“iPhone 5 is the best iPhone yet, the most beautiful product we’ve ever made, and we hope customers love it as much as we do.”

Announced last week, the iPhone 5 features a new thinner design, a larger screen with a 4-inch retina display, an A6 chip and the new iOS 6.

The latest iteration of Apple’s hugely popular smartphone is set to release on September 21st.