Most of us still don’t have an iPhone 5s, and that’s quadruply true of the hard-to-get gold model, leading to a perception of extremely limited demand. But how accurate is that perception? Not very, according to new channel supply tracking data from Piper-Jaffray. In fact, the iPhone 5s is easier to find two-and-a-half weeks after release than the iPhone 5 was.
According to a survey conducted by Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster, there is at least one model of the space gray iPhone 5s in every Apple store he contacted. That’s more than 60 Apple retail stores that have an iPhone 5s in stock, even if it’s not the exact iPhone 5s you want.
According to Munster, that’s a big step up from the iPhone 5, which was nearly impossible to find at virtually the same point last year. Munster says that this is due to the fact that the iPhone 5s is largely the same design as the iPhone 5, short of the new Touch ID sensor, which Munster says Apple has done a “good job” with in terms of mitigating possible yield issues.
So if you are frustrated by the scarcity of the iPhone 5s at your local Apple store, keep looking. They’re out there… and, in fact, you can almost always find a space gray one if you look hard enough.
