Some local shops have started to sell the handsets at the aforementioned prices. They include Hnammobile, Halo Shop, PhongGee and CellphoneS in Ho Chi Minh City, and Shopdunk and DVS Digital mobile phone shops in Hanoi.

However, the official distributors of the gadgets - Viettel and Vinaphone - have not put them on sale yet. The former is expected to sell them next month.

Tinhte.vn, a popular technology website, has introduced several clips to show hands-on previews of the handsets and a brief comparison between the iPhone 5 and its predecessor, the iPhone 4.

A hands-on preview of the iPhone 5 by Tinhte's administrator Tran Manh Hiep.

 A brief comparison between the iPhone 5 and its predecessor, the iPhone 4.

The site says the first patch of the iPhone 5 imported by the military-run Viettel have arrived in Vietnam.

A sneak peek at both the black and white versions of iPhone 5 from Tinhte's source. Photo coutersy of Tinhte.vn

There is also news that Viettel, Vinaphone and Mobifone will sell nano-SIMs for the iPhone 5 in October.

Some Viettel stores in Phan Thiet, Bao Loc, Dak Nong and a few other provinces tell the site that they have received the iPhone 5 handsets but are not allowed to sell them for now.

A sneak peek at the black version of iPhone 5 with a Viettel SIM attached from Tinhte's source. Photo coutersy of Tinhte.vn

The devices can not be sold since the current batch of nano-SIM has not been shipped to Vietnam.

According to the site, conventional SIMs, after being cut to the size of nano-SIMs and grinded a little, work well on the iPhone 5 as the device shows good signal strength.