Apple’s iPhone has made its debut on Vodafone’s network, with 50,000 first-day sales proving that demand for the smartphone has not dimmed after the Christmas rush.
Vodafone is the fourth UK operator to offer the iPhone and had been taking pre-registrations before yesterday’s official launch.
The 50,000 figure clocked up by Vodafone appears to have matched other bumper debuts by the handset. Orange had sold 35,000 iPhones by 4pm on its launch day in November, but insiders said sales were closer to 50,000 by the end of the day. O2 and Tesco Mobile, which also stock the handset, refuse to state sales but it is understood that O2 sold about 50,000 on the day it launched the iPhone 3GS model last June.
The new sales indicate the iPhone has kept its allure since launch two years ago. O2 has sold a million in Britain. Orange and Vodafone rejected a price war when O2’s exclusive deal with Apple ended.
Vodafone’s debut eases fears that it would lose out by not selling the iPhone over Christmas.