White iPhone 4 not in UK till end of year, says Orange

Punters looking to get their hands on a pristine white iPhone 4 won't have the chance until the end of the year, according to an email Orange sent to its UK customers.

"We wanted to let you know that there won't be any white iPhone 4s in the UK until the end of the year. If you're happy to wait another few months we'll let you know as soon as they're back in stock," wrote Orange, as reported by TiPb.

Apple has not yet given a reason as to why it's more difficult to mass-produce a white version of the iPhone 4, but you'd have thought it would have ironed out the problems before promoting its availability at launch.

For the majority of prospective iPhone buyers this won't be too much of a problem, since it just comes down to aesthetics. The black version does exactly the same job and, apart from its infamous teething problems with the antenna, seems to be doing that job well.

Many of you are still waiting for a black iPhone 4 due to stock shortages, however, and Apple are frantically trying to get devices in the hands of people who want them -- of which there are many.

The networks are also suffering from an iPhone 4 drought, which means you won't be able to sign up directly with them until the backlog of stock is cleared by Apple.

Considering the white iPhone 4's no-show, as well as the initial reception problems, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was rushed out.