Telstra rushes iPhone 4 restock

Telstra said it could have stock of Apple's iPhone 4 handsets again from Wednesday after selling out of the first shipment at launch.

The carrier said it was "replenishing stock as quickly as possible" after the iPhone sold out across all of its T-Life retail stores.

"We expect new stock to start arriving in Telstra stores from Wednesday," the telco said in a brief statement.

"In the meantime, we’re taking down details in-store and online and we will update you when your preferred iPhone 4 model arrives."

Apple's own retail website showed an estimated shipping date on the handsets of about three weeks.

Rival Optus' website showed the phones were also out of stock, and asked prospective buyers to register interest. A rep told Twitter: "We don't know when the store will get more stock of the handset."

Vodafone and 3 appeared to be taking online orders for the device, but did not indicate whether the stock was available.

Thousands of people queued last week to get their hands on the device at midnight launches, despite known antenna issues known as the 'death grip'.

Long queues greeted the launch at the Apple retail store in Sydney the following day, with long lines well into the afternoon.