As launch day for the iPhone 5 officially kicked off in Australia at 8am this morning, queues outside Apple Stores and telcos around the country were strong in numbers, as hundreds clambered for pavement space, in a bid to get their hands on the new smartphone.
We take a look at all the launch day action this morning, as iPhone 5 fever officially hits Australia, with the rest of the world soon to follow!
Apple Stores
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak was snapped lining up outside the Chermside Apple Store in Brisbane, chatting on his phone while waiting with more than 300 fans for the outlet’s doors to open. Thanks to Jamie Skella for sending in this photo (below) of Woz taken this morning:
Photograph by Jamie Skella
Meanwhile, the queues and chaos continued grew in other cities, including Sydney where Apple Store locations were buzzing with anticipation. Macworld Australia forum member Brian Bornstein shared photos of the lines outside the Chatswood store in Sydney.
Elsewhere, the lines stretched around the block outside the George St Apple Store in Sydney’s CBD. Fans had been waiting for the new device to land as early as Tuesday, with hundreds queued and waiting patiently.
George St Apple Store in Sydney's CBD. Image via CNET Australia
Over in Canberra, the chaos continued. Outside the newly opened Canberra Centre Apple Store, customers lined up in droves, some waiting since 1am, according to CityNews.com.au
Canberra Centre Apple Store. Image via CityNews.com.au
Telcos
But it wasn’t just Apple Stores fighting crowds this morning, local telcos also drew large numbers, according to a report from GadgetGuy:
“Retail stores for Telstra and Optus have equally reported huge lines, and we suspect that Vodafone is probably dealing with it too,” the website writes.
Telstra outlets in Sydney kept the crowds entertained with a DJ spinning tunes, and staff handing out food to customers.
Twitter has been buzzing with news of the iPhone 5 release, as users posted images of the queues in various locations around the country and tweeted while they waited for doors to open.
Here are just some of the tweets on iPhone 5 flooding the social network this morning:
If you lined up for an iPhone 5 this morning and have photos or stories to share, post a comment in the field below or send us a message on Twitter: @MacworldAU
Not much use listing my experience as I only lined up in Melbourne. According to this report people only lined up in NSW stores (given Canberra is inside NSW borders). The only reason bris got a mention was the novelty of Wozniak. Obvious where the writers are located.