iPhone 5C pre-orders to kick off in the US today

For those of you who don’t prefer to stand in a queue for a week in front of the Apple Store, the company has a plan for you. Apple is throwing open pre-orders for the shiny new iPhone 5C on September 13.

Starting 12:31 PM IST, on September 13, Apple will let users start placing pre-orders to get their hands on the new “budget” iPhone 5C. The phone is supposed to go on sale officially starting September 20.

Pre-orders start today

While Apple itself has not confirmed the time and date for the pre-orders, Verizon and Sprint, two of the biggest carriers in the US, already have web pages up announcing the pre-order starting midnight Pacific Time today. There’s a high possibility that T-Mobile too will be throwing open pre-orders around the same time.

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The opportunity to pre-order the shiny iPhone 5C on Friday will also be available in countries like Canada, Australia, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan Puerto Rico, Singapore and the UK. India, however, does not figure in the first wave of the countries that are going to get iPhone 5C this month.

Interestingly, both the iPhone 5C and the iPhone 5S are to be available for sale starting September 20 but only the cheaper iPhone 5C will be available for pre-orders. The iPhone 5C will be priced at $99 (Rs 6,500 approx) for the 16GB model and $199 (Rs 13,500 approx) for the 32GB model on a two-year contract. The unlocked price is a steep $549.

The iPhone 5C is the cheaper of the two phones launched during the Apple event this week and is designed around a single, hard-coated polycarbonate body with a steel, reinforced frame thrown in. The phone will be available in a range of colours, including blue, green, pink, yellow and white.