Apple may have learned from the first iPhone launch, but today's release of the iPhone 3G still didn't quite go smoothly. Demand once again exceeded supply; I stopped by the Apple store in San Francisco this morning, where staff were surprised by the 300+ queue that had stretched around the block before the 8am opening. Even before the doors opened, supervising staff were voicing uncertainty as to whether they'd have enough handsets to meet demand. Despite their best efforts and extended trading hours, queues had to be curtailed in order for stores across the country to close in time.
Once customers were in-store, things weren't necessarily any easier. San Francisco at least was experiencing delays in the credit card system, keeping buyers waiting as Apple employees tapped frantically at their card machines, and then iTunes was swamped by attempted activations and only stumbled back into life mid-afternoon.
First in line at the Apple Store San Francisco - and only 36hrs wait!
A common problem has been a shortage of 16GB handsets, with buyers perhaps learning from the last time around and bypassing the smaller 8GB model despite its lower sticker price. Apple themselves, despite my best efforts, were remaining coy about how many each store were hoping or expecting to sell; the only figure they'd discuss was the aim of 10m by the end of the year.
Did you queue for an iPhone and leave empty handed? Or perhaps you're reading this post on your new iPhone 3G. I'm curious as to who picked black and who chose white; the latter was surprisingly attractive on the display shelves. Was 8GB enough, or are you having to go back to collect a 16GB model when stock comes in? Let us know in the comments.
I arrived at the Vegas Fashion Mall Apple Store at 615am with about 50 people already in line in front of me. By the time 8am rolled around, there were 200 or more behind us! Finally walked out of the store at 1135am (thanks to activation issues) with my Black 16GB. Wouldn’t activate in the store but worked on about the 5th try when I got back to my hotel room. Flying back home to New York tonight after a LONG week of business in Vegas, but now I have a great story to tell and a new toy to show for it too!
Learnt, last I checked, is not a word. Perhaps you should have used “learned”. This is what caused me to wonder if you were an idiot, so if you’re not, then “git” your ass to the dictionary, or perhaps use spell check. If “learnt” really is a word, then I owe you dinner and an apology. Please let me know where you want to eat!
Arrived at the AT&T Store in Buford, GA around 6:30AM and was surprised to see a line of about 40 people already wrapped around the building for a smaller city. Finally got inside around 9:15 because of activation issues. Out the door, with my unactivated 16GB Black iPhone 3G, by 9:30AM and off to start my work day late. As I walked back to my car, the line was still wrapped around the building. I would guess that there were prolly 150 people total and only 100 iPhones to be sold (so we were told). I knew there would be activation problems all day and didn’t bother to finalize activation until I got home Friday night. No issues. My experience was excellent with the AT&T store in Buford. All exployees were buttoned up, prepared and extremely cordial. The Manager, Nikisha, rocks the house! I’m still wondering if I should have gotten the white iPhone. She’s quite beautiful in person.
Kevin, actually both “learnt” and “learned” are correct – one is more commonly used in British English, apparently, the other in American English. More details here: http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/faq/aboutspelling/learnt
I hail from the UK originally :)
I’d take you up on dinner, but my mother warned me that men are always after one thing…
I order my iPhone online few weeks ago from T-Mobile, Germany. I got it on 11th but with large dissapointmen when I discover that they forget to activate my sim card so I had to rush to first store where they got me a new one. Pretty strange but anyway I’m happy with my brand new 3G.
I got 8gb for my wife and I’m planning get soon 16gb for myself.
And one more discovery which could give us u picture of sale on first day in Germany. A postman says that they will deliver on first day 480 pcs in Hamburg area. If o correct with my calculations, that would be roughly 16.000 pcs delivered by post on first day. This does not include sales in shops. Pretty impressive.
Hey,
I’m in Switzerland. I queued for 2 hours early morning on friday, I had booked my 16GB device 2 weeks in advance at the swisscom shop, and yet, when i reached the inside of the store, … well … stock was out … i had to leave empty handed. Very frustrating. No one could tell me when stock will be refurbished …
Sad sad sad.
Sterling, VA AT&T store here. Got there at 4:30 and was 7th in line. By 8AM over 50 were in line. They got 40 units including one box just delivered (and dropped to which we picked on the drive) by Fedex. I got a black 16GB which by far was the most popular. They took names of the ones left out in line and said they will be notified as shipments come in. Inside though, I was done in 15 minutes as I upgraded my iPhone and added a second line (yes that person was in line with me).
I guess Steve can’t make ‘em any faster.
I was at an AT&T store in the burbs of Philadelphia. I got there at 7:15am for an 8am opening. There were 30-some people in line…which I though was very underwhelming (I was gonna keep driving if it was a long line).
By 8am the line had doubled in size and the first 9 people were let in the store.
We started wondering if they had murdered the first 9, ’cause they didn’t come out…
At 8:45am an AT&T rep came out and said there were 3 16gig blacks and 10 16gig whites left. So I left, since I was still 20 from the door.
The guy behind me posted a pick to Flickr and said he got a white 16gig, which is what he wanted – good for him.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44124342351@N01/2657726497
I think the AT&T store got 40 phones…half 8gig, half 16gig.
Seems like the Apple stores had way more phones, and even though the lines were longer you could get one.
If there are 2,000 AT&T stores and a couple of hundred Apple stores, and we assume 50 phones for AT&T and 500 for an Apple store, they needed 200,000 phones ready…and that’s just for the US. So no wonder it was chaos.
Great design (my wife has a phone and it’s about 10 generations ahead of my Cingular 8525 Windows Mobile 6 phone), but man these companies surely know how to make you hate them. Not a good long term strategy…although maybe they figure there is no such thing as loyalty anyway.
Andrew: sure there is such a thing as loyalty – the unreciprocated loyalty shown by Apple fans towards Apple.
yes i jus activated mine now do internet come with my data plan
I was the first one in line in the Chula Vista Shopping Mall in front of the at&t store. I was suprised that know one was there by the time that i arrived around 6pm. So i just sat down around 6:30. After about ten minutes 10 people had lined behind me and by the time we got our phones there was easily 50 to 60 people. Sucked because at&t only had about 40ish. I love my new black gb iphone 3g!!!
I got my 16 gb black Iphone on Saturday at the Apple store in South Coast Plaza.
I waited four hours, but had fun talking to the other people on line. since this is my
First Iphone, I learned a lot about using the Iphone and about several useful apps available
At the App store.
I got in line at the Apple Store, in Peabody, Massachusetts at 7:40. There were about 150 people in line, ahead of me.
I’d passed the ATT store on my way to the Apple Store and there were people lined up outside and around the building.
I got to the front of the line just outside the entrance of the Apple Store when the Apple reps handsets went down:(
I waited outside the store for about a hour and finally got into the store at 10:48
I spent another 90 minutes queued up inside the store waiting for iTunes to get on with the activating. The bottleneck occurred around 11, when the California stores opened.
I walked out with a black 16G at 12:35 and finally got it activated, at home, at 4:30.
The husband of the woman, in line, just behind me, had gone to the ATT store. They were covering both bases and whoever got to the front of the line was gong to buy the phones.
He showed up around 10AM, saying that the ATT store had run out of black 16gig phones.
You’d think that ATT would have wanted to sell more phones. Was that strategy or oversight?
This new iphone looks really cheap compared to the old one, made entirely of plastic!! and if you honestly do the math with $70 month plan (450 minutes), and paying $399 if you dont qualify for an upgrade or $199 for new AT&T customers.
Do you believe Apple is making the iphone cheaper and more affordable, what a joke!!
Hey Tony, I don’t “feel” that the iPhone 3G “looks really cheap” at all. I personally like the new back versus the metal back on the first iPhone. I had a lot of issues “holding”on to the original iPhone bc it was pretty slippery. However, with the iPhone 3G – it simply stays put in my hands. The tapered edges is much more comfortable for long duration of usages. Believe it or not, I’m actually using the iPhone 3G to make more calls now that it feels more like a phone in my hands and more importantly, the call quality has improved a lot (probably thanks to the new plastic back cover).
Well… I am an Austrian living in the Netherlands. Here the iPhone was introduced exactly 00:01 on the 11th at the t-Mobile shop in the middle of Rotterdam. They said there would be around 500 phones for this midnight sale.
I got there at around 20:30, but then the line was an estimated 800 people (not counting the press standing there), so I decided that instead of waiting in vain, I could better use the sleep for my hunt on the next day, which I hoped to be more successful.
So I asked my Boss nicely if it would be OK for him if I left 2,5 hours earlier and it was. I first went to a Mediamarkt a bit outside of Rotterdam: sold out. Then to the largest shopping mall of the city: sold out. Another Mediamarkt: sold out. All t-mobile shops in the vicinity: sold out.
Finally I tried a long-shot and called a phone shop in my home town. “Yes,” I was told “we have one white 16 GB left. You’re lucky, we don’t expect a restock for the next two weeks.” They agreed to reserve it for me and I rushed down there. We got halfway through the registration when all of a sudden the t-mobile servers crashed due to a too great demand – through the whole Netherlands!! So I had to wait until Saturday afternoon to finally pick my baby up.
Today at work all my co-workers were drooling over it… ;-) Some were even outright pissed that they didn’t get one and now have to wait for two weeks…
Cheers from Zeeland,
Rene