This morning Apple opened pre-orders for its flashy (excuse the pun) new revision to its iPhone product line – iPhone 4. Advertised as the biggest leap since the original iPhone introduced back in 2007, iPhone 4 brings with it a 5 mega-pixel camera complete with iMovie integration, a new 326 pixel-per-inch ‘retina display’ and FaceTime, video conferencing over a Wi-Fi (and soon 3G) network.

A little after 10AM (GMT) this morning, people started to notice the online Apple store was in fact down and about 20 minutes afterward the store came up for about half an hour, revealing the UK pre-order price of £499 for the 16GB model and £599 for the 32GB.

To peoples surprise the device was set to come both SIM-free an unlocked, meaning the lucky few who would get through to successfully order the device for delivery June 24th, would now be able to choose which carrier they wanted to jump on. Fortunately I can say I was one of the lucky ones, with my order having been successfully processed and confirmed as valid via Apple.com, around 11.40 AM this morning.

Unfortunately though, the fun came to an end around 12 noon London time, with both Apple UK and US closing the stores to further pre-orders of iPhone 4 due to the sheer demand. The site was clearly getting hammered. In fact, it reached a point were Apple reportedly actually removed the whole pre-order page where customers selected which models they would like to buy, because it was causing further server errors.

Seven hours on and customers in the US, UK, Japan, Spain and France are still trying to pre-order the iPhone 4, with the system reportedly simply crashing out once users reach the checkout page. Frustrating definitely, but its definitely not a new one on iPhone early adopters, especially those located in the US.

Today’s events mirror what can only be described as the shambles of a pre-order system which graced our browsers in 2008, when AT&T and Apple tried to open orders for the second iPhone, iPhone 3G. Many users are resorting to visiting their local AT&T stores and finding they weren’t the only one with the idea, with lines still forming at stores – and this is just the pre-order. People are basically lining up so they can line up again on June 24th. Madness.

That said, the pre-orders haven’t been a total failure, with many users reporting success by pre-ordering via the new ‘Apple Store’ iOS app.

We asked our followers on Twitter that if they could to describe today’s iPhone 4 pre-ordering experience in just one word.

Here’s just some of the answers we received.

“Facepalm” – @TobyRyan

“1337″ – @jtjdt

“Tedious” – @PixelJimi

“Bullsh*t” – @TheTechReviewer

“Frustrating!” – @bldngnerd

“Despicable” – @GaganMoorthy

“Meh” – @Zamzarvideo

“Painless” – @theiBlog

“Ongoing” – @Lhasapso

“Elating” – @LewisFielder

“Nauseating” – @JackAmick

“Sadness” – @Timstarockz

… and my personal favourite.

“Timed-Out” – @JasonCitron

Despite the negativity towards both Apple and AT&T currently, if this service outage proves anything its that the iPhone 4 is in huge demand, and with all UK networks refusing to reveal handset pricing I can see Apple receiving a few more orders for the unlocked handset before today is out. Ka’Ching!

[Update] – It seems if you haven’t already gotten your iPhone 4 order through to Apple and received confirmation via e-mail, you’re too late. Apple is now quoting all new pre-orders will ship by ‘July 2nd’ (at least in the UK).

[Update 2] – We can confirm pre-orders placed through the US online store are still showing as shipping by June 24th.

[Update 3] – @BGR is reporting all orders placed today through AT&T after 1:30 PM Pacific will be pushed to delivery between June 25th – July 5th.

We’ve been able to confirm with multiple sources that all of all of the AT&T pre-order iPhones have been spoken for. Anyone who placed an order after 1:30pm Pacific can expect to get their iPhone 4 between June 25th and July 5th.

[Update 4] – We’ve just confirmed that the shipping date for orders placed through the US online store have also slipped to ‘July 2nd’.

[Update 5] – @Abcmsaj claims an @O2 representative has confirmed that despite known delays and push backs, the company will be selling both the White and Black models on June 24th.

“We know apple are only taking pre orders for the black one and the shipping date has been pushed back, but O2 will have both white and black models on the 24th of June.”

[Update 6] – Shipping has now slipped to July 14th, up from July 2nd just this morning, on all new pre-orders placed through Apple US.

[Update 7] – It seems AT&T has now begun to cancel previously confirmed iPhone 4 pre-orders, with @ModMyi reporting they have received a tip from a reader who received an email from AT&T today informing him of the cancellation of his previously confirmed iPhone 4 pre-order.

Dear xxxxxxxxxx

Thank you for choosing AT&T.

Unfortunately, we were either unable to verify the information you provided or you have exceeded the number of lines of service that we allow customers to purchase online. As a result, your order has been canceled.

If you would like to purchase additional lines of service, please visit one of our AT&T retail locations and present your identification to our representatives. They will be happy to help you purchase new wireless devices, accessories, and service.

Go to att.com/storelocator to find a store near you.

We apologize for the inconvenience and look forward to serving you.

Thank you.

AT&T

Oh Dear.