It’s plain English on the Express Replacement web page:
“
When you request Express Replacement Service,
we’ll send you a replacement device.”
We know how much you rely on your iPhone. With Express Replacement Service, you receive a replacement right away, so you don’t have to go without.
support.apple.com
Read the text above carefully, direct from Apple. See where it says “
you receive a replacement right away, so you don’t have to go without”?
There are no qualifiers, like, when we feel like it, after we’ve sold enough new inventory, etc.. It’s a contract that Apple enters into with people, after taking their money. Not adhering to the contract would be unethical.
Why are there people defending Apple for not initiating the replacement “when” it was determined by Apple that a replacement was the appropriate remedy? What does one gain by arguing for Apple not acting ethically on a service named “
Express Replacement” that people have paid for?