iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are now available for pre-order

Following their unveilings on Tuesday, Apple has made both the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus available for online pre-order. I want to be up front and say that I have not seen the online store (website) come back up yet, but myself and a number of readers/colleagues have managed to place orders through other avenues.

It seems like people are having the most success with the Apple Store app. It takes some patience, and maybe even a few tries, but that’s how I placed my order, and was able to opt for in-store pickup. Otherwise, you can try your carrier’s website—I see some folks on Twitter have had luck ordering with AT&T and Verizon.

Still, it can’t be good for Apple’s business that it’s more than an hour late (at the time of writing) in getting its online store back up. It went offline around 8pm PST, and was supposed to return at 12:01 am PST. Additionally, users have complained of typical pre-order issues with carrier sites, such as crashing/load failures.

Update: it’s about 2:15 am PST, and it looks like Apple’s web store is back online for most folks.

Anyway, if you manage to get through, keep in mind that the iPhone 6 has a 4.7-inch screen, and is easier to use with one hand. The 6 Plus has a larger 5.5-inch screen, a bigger battery, and an exclusive camera feature called Optical Image Stabilization. The iPhone 6 starts at $199, and the 6 Plus starts at $299 (with contract).

You may also be interested in reading over these recent posts on the two handsets:

If you do pre-order, make sure to let us know what model and color iPhone you go with below!