Apple has quietly removed the April 24 Apple Watch release date from its main US website.
Head to Apple’s US website and the previous “Available 04.24.15” message has been replaced by a decidedly more vague “The Watch is coming.”
Over on Apple’s UK website, meanwhile, the former specific message remains – albeit with the UK’s more logical date format (“Available 24.04.15”).
This would indicated that the Apple Watch is still technically on for an April 24 launch, but that it will prove very tricky to simply walk into a shop and buy one on that date – particularly in Apple’s home market.
Shortages of Apple’s first smartwatch have been expected for some time. There have been rumours of production difficulties surrounding the Apple Watch since well before it was officially announced, back when we were still referring to its as the iWatch.
Such worries have solidified in recent weeks, as Apple itself has confirmed that customers should expect Apple Watch stock shortages upon release.
Read More: 5 things Apple Watch does that rival smartwatches can’t
In recent days, analysts have claimed that Apple is rectifying this by ramping up Apple Watch production, though this would still be too late to meet demand around that much-heralded April 24 release date.
Despite these stock restrictions, analysts reckon that Apple will sell between 2.3 million and 4 million watches in the quarter ending June 30.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
