SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - It's no secret that the latest iPhone is the hottest gadget going this summer. And the demand for them in Yellowknife keeps surging well past supply.

Lauren MacNeill shows off her favourite gadget, the new iPhone 4, at Roy's AudioTronic. The store sold out of the popular smartphones within an hour and a half on Friday. - Taylor Lambert/NNSL photo

"We sold out in an hour and a half," said Robin Williams, manager of Roy's AudioTronic. The store had been sent 30 of the wildly popular smartphones, though they requested about 125. Local residents scooped up all of the phones during Friday's launch.

"This was a product that had to be allocated worldwide, not just in Canada," said Williams. "And Apple had to allocate it in different regions of Canada. There were regions that only received 10 [iPhones] per town. So we're pretty lucky to get 30."

Dozens of people have been coming into the store each day asking about the phone, which operates on the Bell network. The store has asked manufacturer Apple Inc. for 150 more phones and is hoping to receive new stock next week, but there has been no word yet on how many will be sent.

"That's what we're anticipating, but it's not 100 per cent," Williams said.

The Source and World of Wireless also carry the phone, but the situation is much the same: it's impossible to keep it on the shelves.

Lauren MacNeill was a BlackBerry user for three years before purchasing her first iPhone on Friday.

"It's awesome," she said. "You pay for the brand, but I have a lot of Apple products."

The newest incarnation of the popular device, known as iPhone 4, attracted a great deal of criticism from consumers and the media for a design flaw in the built-in antenna. When held in a bare hand without a case, the phone would reportedly have a significant drop in signal reception. Apple later issued free rubber cases to users, but MacNeill, who bought a case with her phone, said hers has been working fine.

"There's been a lot of gossip and complaints about the reception, but I haven't had any," she said.

Williams and his staff did reproduce the problem on the first phone they tried, saying "There is some basis to [the complaints]."

But there seem to have been nothing but satisfied iPhone customers, so far as he knows.

"We've had no one coming back to complain at all," said Williams. "Actually, to the contrary, people come back to say how great a device it is."

MacNeill, who studies education at the University of Alberta, is certainly happy so far. She has yet to venture into the app store to try new software.

"So far I use it for texting, calling and email, and that's all!" she said.

Although Williams said the iPhone is the biggest launch of the summer, they will also soon be stocking the new BlackBerry Torch, unveiled by Canadian company Research In Motion on Tuesday and hailed as a potential 'iPhone killer.'

"I don't think they need to try and kill the iPhone," said Williams, suggesting RIM play to its strengths as the primary choice for the business market.