The iPhone 4S was quite a popular little handset over its launch weekend, with Apple announcing that it sold over four million units within the first few days of availability. Unsurprisingly, this led to sell-outs most everywhere, leaving many customers that opted not to pre-order without a 4S or a clue as to when they might get a chance to buy one. One might think that now that 4S stock might be more plentiful now that we're nearly a month removed from launch, but according to Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Whitmore, that's not the case. Whitmore recently contacted both online and brick and mortar stores belonging to Apple and the three U.S. carriers that offer the iPhone and found that on average, the wait time for a 4S came out to around 14 days. Around 85 to 90 percent of the 30 Apple stores contacted by Whitmore reported that they're running out of 4S stock every day, despite the fact that new shipments come in fairly frequently (sometimes even daily).

Keeping up with the iPhone 4S news, Consumer Reports today announced that it's given Apple's new smartphone its "Recommended" seal of approval after finding no issues with the device's antenna. Consumer Reports made headlines last year and earlier this year when it said that it couldn't recommend either the GSM or CDMA iPhone 4 due those handsets' death grip/"Antennagate" signal issues. The iPhone 4S features two separate antennas to help improve call quality, and the design has also all but eliminated the problems suffered by the iPhone 4. Meanwhile, Consumer Reports says that the new 8GB iPhone 4 still experiences the same death grip problems as previous iPhone 4 models.

Although it can be tough for customers interested in buying an iPhone 4S to actually find one, Apple does offer a reservation system that allows users to secure a new iPhone by checking the stock of their local Apple store after 9 p.m. and putting their name down for one if their desired model is available, then pick it up from the store the next day. I actually used the service last weekend, and it worked exactly as advertised. Apple's reservation system seems to be your best bet if you're want to purchase an iPhone 4S as soon as possible, as the carrier websites this morning are showing that most orders placed today won't ship for 2 to 3 weeks (Verizon does report that 16GB and 64GB models will be shipping by 11/11). Are any of you still searching for an iPhone 4S?

Via Today's iPhone, Consumer Reports, CNET