According to a report in MacRumors, Apple is starting to ship pre-orders of its Lightning to 30-pin adapter. Apple is supposedly sending out shipping notifications with October 9th delivery dates to Australian customers who pre-ordered the adapter. The adapter will arrive two weeks after the iPhone 5 went on sale and almost four weeks after pre-orders started.

Apple's iPhone 5 and new iPod touch ship with a new 8-pin Lightning port that is not compatible with the 30-pin connector used by all iPhone, iPod touch and iPad accessories to date. This adapter will make it easy for iPhone 5 and new iPod touch owners to use these older accessories while they wait for new 8-pin compatible products to hit the market.

The Lightning to 30-pin adapter is available from Apple for US$29. Apple is also offering a $39 Lightning to 30-pin adapter that has a short cable.