Carphone Warehouse is set to sell up to 10,000 Apple iPhones when it launches in the UK next Friday.

Carphone secured the exclusive third-party retailer distribution rights for the much-hyped device, which combines Apple’s iPod music player, a web browser and camera with a mobile phone.

It will also be sold through operator O2 and in Apple stores and online.

Carphone Warehouse head of wireless UK Darren Gardner gave the first indications of sales expectations for the handset in theUKat a meeting of journalists yesterday.

Gardnercalculated that with more than 800 stores in theUK, Carphone alone could sell about 10,000 iPhones in the four hours following its launch at6pmon November 9.

The retailer will keep stores open a further four hours to meet demand.

Apple has not provided any sales forecasts since announcing the launch earlier this year.