Carphone Warehouse has confirmed to Pocket-lint that the iPhone 5, due in shops in the UK on Friday 21 September, is the most pre-ordered phone in the history of the business.

According to the company, the UK’s largest independent mobile retailer has taken more than four times as many pre-orders for the new Apple handset than any other handset launch since it began trading in 1989.

"Last week’s pre orders for the iPhone 5 smashed all previous handset launches at Carphone Warehouse," says Graham Stapleton, Chief Commercial Officer at Carphone Warehouse.

According to the retailer it also noticed that two thirds of the increased mobile traffic came from iPhones and iPads suggesting current iPhone users are keen to upgrade.

Carphone Warehouse is the only retailer that can connect and upgrade iPhone 5 customers on all networks with prices starting from free for £46 per month, which puts us in a great position to be able to provide our customers with exactly what they want from handset and tariff.

The news comes shortly after Apple confirmed it had taken more than 2 million iPhone 5 pre-orders in first 24 hours. 

But should you cancel your pre-order? Pocket-lint is one of a handful of sites around the globe to have already reviewed the iPhone 5.

Read what we thought in our extensive Apple iPhone 5 review.