Apple's long-awaited new iPhone 5 has gone on sale today, with queues of eager fans waiting outside its stores to buy the smartphone.
[uuid=2a8ffa14-320b-4fab-ae9a-a5ff19d9ea54]Announced last week[/uuid], the new phone has a 4-inch screen (previous iPhones had a 3.5-inch screen) and a taller body that its predecessor - but it marginally thinner than the iPhone 4S.
The iPhone 5 has gone on sale in Britain, the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore today, with Apple claiming to have received more than two million pre-orders in 24 hours.
Available in black and slate or silver and white, the handset has a SIM-free price of between £529 and £699 depending on spec.
Carphone Warehouse's chief commercial officer Graham Stapleton dismissed criticism of the phone from some on the internet.
He told Digital Spy: "Once you hold the handset in your hand as I have, you can really tell how premium and slick the design is.
"We're really excited about the release this Friday and we're convinced that customers are not going to be disappointed. The only decision that customers need to think about is which network is going to give them the best deal."
Some buyers had been waiting at The Apple Store in Regent Street, London, since last week - sitting on canvas chairs and sleeping on the street in sleeping bags.
Meanwhile on the other side of the planet in Sydney, Australia, a group of activists have staged a mock food queue across the street from the queue at the Apple Store to highlight the "folly of consumerism".