I received this email today:

I already received the iPod Shuffle v2 I ordered for my wife. Ordered in September, selected free shipping during checkout, shipped from China on Monday, and it was handed to me at 10 am this morning. Haven't been able to use it yet, but dannnnnnnng is it cool to look at!

It echoes what I've heard from many of you and even my own experience.

My MacBook Pro Core 2 Duo was ordered via Apple's online store and I selected the faster "2-3 Business Days (after shipping)" option for an extra US$18. Apple's online order status page (which I highly recommend) told me that it was shipping on 31 October and was slated to arrive on 02 November.

I was extremely surprised when the FedEx tracking page changed on 31 October. My MBP had traveled from Shanghai to Anchorage to Indianapolis on the 30th, then from Indianapolis to Philadelphia to New Jersey on the 31st. I was very excited when I read that my new MBP was "On FedEx vehicle for delivery" yesterday, when I wasn't expecting it until a full two days later!

Sure enough it arrived yesterday and I haven't slept much since. Obviously, your mileage may vary and not everyone is going to receive their order two days early. Apple's overly conservative shipping estimates are another example of their commitment to under-promise and over-deliver and they deserve credit for it.