New York (AHN) - Speculation about possible new versions of Apple's iPhone has surfaced as New York stores say they running low on stock of the popular phone.

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster found the shortage was occurring nationwide after calling 20 stores around the country..

According to the Silicon Alley Insider, Munster related the shortage to a malfunction in the production process. But more likely, the shortage could be due to a possible Apple plan to launch the new 3G model sooner than previously announced.

Should the latter be the reason, Munster speculated that the upcoming version would most probably still be the same device, but with more efficient capabilities.

"We do not expect a radical form factor change and see the new version as looking similar to the existing iPhone," said Munster.

Other possible reasons cited on CNet News included demand being too great for manufacturing to keep up.

The article admitted this theory to be unlikely, as the iPhone had not had that problem since its release. There has also been no evidence of a rise in the device's market demand.