I think there is definitely an element of (3) in their strategy.
From the link - "While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date"
I think they estimated how many they can sell, gave shops 80% (or some other fraction) of that, and made sure they had millions more ready to provide to these shops over time.
The ideal situation for a manufacturer is to "sell out" in the first few days, but not sell out for so long that people go to rival products.
Apple are exceptionally good at supply chains and hype management, so I have no doubt that they made are controlling supply to make this launch look as successful as possible.
The best way to manage this is having a bit of a stockpile.
The easiest way to manage it is to have a stockpile. The best way is to have a pipeline of shipments coming off boats each day and going through distribution centres as quickly as possible.
Unless you are sure that you are going to sell out everywhere keeping some back makes sense so that you can send them where you need them most. Doesn't make sense to have them sitting in the regions where they aren't needed when other places need them. I picture less than 20% but would see it as distribution strategy rather than a shortage strategy.
From the link - "While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date"
I think they estimated how many they can sell, gave shops 80% (or some other fraction) of that, and made sure they had millions more ready to provide to these shops over time.
The ideal situation for a manufacturer is to "sell out" in the first few days, but not sell out for so long that people go to rival products.
Apple are exceptionally good at supply chains and hype management, so I have no doubt that they made are controlling supply to make this launch look as successful as possible.
The best way to manage this is having a bit of a stockpile.