Reports Claim Apple To Order 24-25 Million 3G iPhones [3M iPhones Earmarked for June]

According to a report published in the Chinese-language Commercial
Times, the Taipei-based Foxconn Electronics - the manufacturer
responsible for building Apple's iPod range and designated manufacturer
of Apple's current and up and coming 3G iPhone models - has been
informed by Apple to expect to ship between 24-25 million 3G iPhones
over the product's lifecycle, 3 million of which will be shipped in June.

The report, which unsubstantiated by Apple, originates from 'sources at
foreign institutional investors' and, if true, gives further credence to
rumours that Apple will make a formal announcement concerning its 3G
iPhone at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference 2008 (WWDC 2008) in June.

Considering that the original iPhone has shipped around six million
units, should this report be believed, this would necessitate (to put
matters in perspective) a 400% increase in production rates for the 3G
model and, though the touted figures seem particularly high, we for one
don't doubt that many have been holding back on purchasing an iPhone
until the 3G model becomes available (ourselves included).