All of the hype surrounding the Apple Watch may have been too much to handle, with market research firm Slice Intelligence claiming only 22 percent of the pre-order units have been shipped to customers.

It is one of the lowest numbers ever in Apple's history, showing some of the flaws of the new head of retail Angela Ahrendts plan to change the retail experience.

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The figures also show the lack of supply for the Apple Watch, with most units delayed until June and some in the waiting list until July. The Apple Watch Sport appears to be the favorite, with 50 percent of customers buying the cheaper option without the stainless steel and sapphire crystal glass.

Ahrendts wanted to remove the retail experience where waiting in a queue for hours on end was fun, instead allowing customers to enter a store, pick up their pre-purchased device and be on their way.

Even though this removes an element of 'hype' surrounding a launch, it also gives customers that don't want to sleepover near Apple's retail store a way to easily pick up the device or have it shipped to their doorstep without issue.

The only issue with Ahrendts' plan is the lack of stock currently available for the Apple Watch. If there were a few million units stocked up and ready to send out, the plan would've worked, but the lack of supply has made millions miss out on the April 24 launch date.

LG Display is reportedly one of the major reasons for the delay, lacking the supplies to build over two million units already pre-ordered.

Apple's next challenge will be making the Apple Watch more than shelfware, which is what most of the Android Wear devices have been up to this point. It needs to be able to be much quicker at showing notifications, offer genuine experiences that cannot be found on the iPhone or iPad, to warrant being on someone's wrist for the full day.

Whether it manages to convince users will be shown in the next few months. Early reviews show a lack of core apps and slow speeds, but these can be fixed with time.

Apple is planning to announce its Q2 earnings report later today, where we will undoubtedly find out how many Apple Watch units it has sold. Check back here to see the full earnings report at 4PM New York Time.

TagsApple Watch, smartwatch