Apple appears to be having trouble keeping its new iPhone 3G in stock in the U.S., as reports propose few phones were available in Apple’s stores.

The problem appears to be exacerbated by the simultaneous launch of the iPhone 3G across universal markets. Another factor driving demand is likely considering exclusive carrier AT&T is offering subsidies on the iPhone 3G, making the price considerably less than when the first-generation iPhone launched.

Severe Shortages

An Apple fan site reported severe shortages in California and New York. It said only one store in California had stock on hand, and that was limited to the black 16GB model. It plus said Apple’s 5th Avenue store was the only outlet in New York with stock, limited to the white 16GB model.

The Web site for the Apple Retail Store has a tool to check iPhone availability at Apple’s stores in the U.S., but it presented to be disabled Monday and a

notice advised visitors to return after 9 p.m. Reportedly, last week only 13 Apple stores had all three iPhone 3G models in stock, and on Sunday no stores had all the models. Those models are the black 8GB, the white 16GB, and the black 16GB versions.

AT&T stores began running out of stock just four days after the July 11 launch for the iPhone 3G. AT&T says the average wait day for the iPhone 3G is now about three weeks.

There were plus problems on launch day, with AT&T reporting in-store iPhone 3G activations were stopped at about 9:30 a.m. Eastern duration considering of issues with the iTunes 7.7 software needed to configure the device. AT&T next recommended that customers activate the smartphones at home.

Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at JupiterResearch, noted that the July 11 launch started in New Zealand and was to continue on to California as stores…

Original post by Top Tech News