While none of these people, many of whom are unemployed and paid by others to stay in line for days, will spend the $3,600 someone in China just paid [13]for a "gold" iPhone, they will gladly pay hundreds of dollars out of pocket, or in many cases simply lease with zero money down [14], the latest and greatest aspirational gadget to show they are cooler than they actually are.
Case in point: in front of the main Apple store on 58th and Fifth some 4700 people are unaware you could have ordered the iPhone online and have it delivered today...
Crowd at 5th Ave Apple Store w less than 45 min to go. One Apple estimate has 4700 ppl lined up at area stores. pic.twitter.com/4cdv9o9g1l [15]
— Ed Baig (@edbaig) September 19, 2014 [16]
Iphone line from my office. Lots of cheering pic.twitter.com/5Pg2eFzaTI [17]
— Peter Heise (@HeisePete) September 19, 2014 [18]
Apple Store UWS line goes 3 blocks and wraps around another. One Apple employee said there were around "1000" people. pic.twitter.com/UK0kByzllX [19]
— Eli Blumenthal (@eliblumenthal) September 19, 2014 [20]
My rough estimate: about 125 people now waiting in line at Upper West Side Apple Store for iPhone & growing. pic.twitter.com/qhA2ij40hE [21]
— Ed Baig (@edbaig) September 18, 2014 [22]
The #iPhone6 [23] and #iPhone6Plus [24] are here: http://t.co/YbDZwHngeL [25] pic.twitter.com/c1KyeY5iKr [26]
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) September 19, 2014 [27]
In meatpacking - the line is 4 blocks long:
The line for the iPhone 6 in NYC's Meatpacking District. 4 blocks long. pic.twitter.com/Zug9E5jykb [28]
— Meredith Frost (@MeredithFrost) September 19, 2014 [29]
For some, it is a matter of outsmarting your significant other. From USA Today [30]:
Chris Johnson, 53, who waited in line at the Apple Store on Manhattan's Upper West Side, the goal was to get a new phone and to get one faster than his girlfriend. "My girlfriend, she pre-ordered, so I'm just trying to beat her." said Johnson. "She thinks I'm crazy to be out here, but I think she's crazy to pre-order because you may not get yours for 7-10 days. I want to pretty much guarantee."
Others are so eager to look cool, they will beat the living crap out of the next "not so cool" guy in line next to them. As USA Today reports, one group of people was waiting to buy "10 gold iPhones" to resell to a person from Dubai. When a fight broke out among another group, said to be from China, the police were called.
Fights breaking out at UWS Apple Store. Cops have been called. Still 12 hours to go. Cc @usatodaytech [31] pic.twitter.com/2BOaE4Hmho [32]
— Eli Blumenthal (@eliblumenthal) September 18, 2014 [33]
It is not just New York. As USA Today reports:
Thousands of fans lined up at Apple stores worldwide as the tech giant kicked off sales of its iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones.
Stores in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan and Europe opened early Friday, as consumers in the United States eagerly awaited the arrival of Apple's latest iPhones.
Countless customers braved lined for hours -- and days -- in hopes of securing the new iPhones, which feature a significant boost in screen size. Some customers at Apple's New York store began waiting in line for the next iPhone before Apple's announcement last week.
[34]
Found the end of the iPhone 6 line, 3 blocks away. Rumor has it that the new iPhone is, in fact, a phone. pic.twitter.com/p8Uc6K01VV [35]
— Hockey Brunch in CHI (@HockeyBrunch) September 19, 2014 [36]
People crowd in front of the Apple Store in Munich, Germany to purchase the new iPhone
[37]
People line up outside an Apple shop in London for the next iPhone
iPhone 6 fans line the @ATT [38] store on Dorset in S. Burlington Friday morning. #btv [39] #iPhone6 [23] @bfp_news [40] pic.twitter.com/YbrCxPzcpK [41]
— Philip Tortora (@PhilipTortora) September 19, 2014 [42]
Over 1000 people in line to get the new iPhone 6 at Toronto's Eaton Centre. #apple [43] @BNN [44] #tech [45] pic.twitter.com/gQw7sWW0Mw [46]
— Partsinevelos (@KristinaParts) September 19, 2014 [47]
The line in Burlington, Ontario
And so on.
