Apple’s giant iPhone 6 order causing delays for accessory makers

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According to sources, third-party Lightning iPhone 6 accessories could be in short supply for the immediate future.

Excessive demand might mean that the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus won’t make it into your hands until October in some cases — but users waiting for iPhone 6 accessories could be delayed even longer.

According to sources who spoke with Cult of Mac, many smaller, non-Apple companies are currently unable to get the necessary Lightning connectors and authentication chips needed to manufacture products because Apple has snapped up all the available inventory.

Many MFi part distributors won’t give any estimates on availability, which means both manufacturers and end users could be in for a wait before regular shipments of related iPhone and iPad accessories resume.

In several cases, third-party manufacturers are out of stock on the Lightning version of their products.

This isn’t the first time Apple’s “unprecedented” order of new iPhone 6 devices has caused a bottleneck for manufacturers. Recently it was reported that Apple is currently shipping so many new devices from its factories to sales outlets that it’s causing big air freight delays for even “top tier” rival manufacturers.

Apple shipments via FedEx and UPS are said to be “incredibly high” for the holiday season, largely based on the new iPhone 6 and iPad refresh. It’s estimated by Creative Strategies analyst Ben Bajarin that Apple could potentially sell in the 60+ million range for iPhones this holiday quarter.

According to sources in the Taiwan-based iPhone supply chain, Apple is currently preparing the parts and components to manufacture up to 80 million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus devices before the end of 2014.

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