If you've pre-ordered either model in the new Pixel 2 series then you'll be happy to hear that Google has confirmed it is now shipping the handsets to customers. 

However, Google's email are only going out to those buyers who had an expected shipping date of October 17, essentially those who purchased the Pixel 2 or Pixel 2 XL in the initial rush after the pre-orders first went live - within the first week, essentially. Subsequent purchases may ship later.

Fortunately, there's a fairly easy way to tell whether your Pixel is winging its way to you soon - Google will charge the card you used to buy the phone within 24-hours of shipping, so check your bank balance periodically, and when it's charged you'll be getting an email to say it has shipped within 24 hours of the money leaving your account.

Non pre-order sales were expected to ship by October 29, so in theory all of the pre-order sales should have been shipped before the end of the month.

However, Google seems to be having some difficulty in fulfilling its pre-order shipments, according to reports.

Discussions on Reddit have emerged from people who've pre-ordered the Pixel 2, specifically the white coloured version (and not the Pixel 2 XL, it seems) who previously were told it would ship in October; now apparently they're getting emails telling them this has changed to November.

Google at least has recognised and acknowledged the blunder, and is offering a voucher code for a free Live Case to anyone impacted by the delay - the code will reportedly be sent through in a subsequent email