by , 10:10 AM EDT, July 21st, 2004

Finding an iPod mini will be just as tough when the product goes on sale worldwide Saturday as it has been in the US, according to MacWorld UK magazine.

Saying global demand of the colored music player has been "unprecedented," Apple said it is consuming nearly every 4GB 1-inch hard drive that Hitachi is making, and shipping out all the minis that it can as fast as it can.

In the U.K., some resellers are telling customers that even though the product will be officially available this Saturday, the wait will be an additional eight weeks if they ordered today because the demand and existing orders is outstripping availability.

Originally announced at Macworld Expo, San Francisco in January, Apple experienced huge demand for the product across the US on launch, selling almost 100,000 units in just two weeks. At present, many independent Apple dealers in the US can't keep units in stock.