Lines outside the Apple store on Fifth Avenue wrap around the block this morning.
(Credit: CNET/Sarah Tew)After a longer than usual wait for Apple iPhone fans, the newest version--the iPhone 4S--is finally hitting store shelves today all across the U.S. and in six other countries.
Starting at 8 a.m. local time, the iPhone 4S will go on sale at Apple stores. And for the first time in the U.S., a brand new iPhone will go on sale for not one, but three, wireless operators. In addition to AT&T, both Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel will also be selling the new iPhone 4S. Retailers including Best Buy, Target, Sam's Club, and Radio Shack will also be selling the newest iPhone.
With preorders for the device already hitting records, the iPhone 4S is expected to be a hot seller. But will it generate the long lines we've seen form outside of Apple stores for past iPhone launches? That's the big question. CNET's team of reporters will be here to keep you posted on the latest news on iPhone launch day.
The CNET New York crew, which includes Maggie Reardon and photographer Sarah Tew, will begin reporting from the Apple store on Fifth Avenue at 7:00 a.m. ET. And on the West Coast, Josh Lowensohn will be offering updates from San Francisco, James Martin will send in pictures from Emeryville, Calif., and Roger Cheng will blog from Los Angeles. So stay tuned for this live blog as we feed updates into it all day long.
New York 8:05 a.m. ET: One reporter just said he is leaving the Apple store on Fifth Avenue to head down to the "Occupy Wall Street" protest. He said it's a better story than the "Occupy Apple" story. He may be right.
Keenen Thompson, who is being sponsored by the iPhone reseller Gazelle, is first in line to buy the iPhone 4S at the Fifth Avenue store in New York City. He has been waiting in line since September 26.
(Credit: CNET/Marguerite Reardon)New York 8:00 a.m. ET The first people have started to go into the store. I'll stick around outside the store until people start to come out with their new devices to get their first impressions of the device. The Apple store on Fifth Avenue supposedly gets more iPhones to sell on launch day than any other store. So hopefully, everyone in line is getting an iPhone 4S. Even if they run out of phones here, they will likely get a fresh stock later today and even more probably over the weekend.
New York 7:55 a.m. ET The Apple employees are all out of the store. It's five minutes until the store opens. And they are getting ready to start cheering on customers who will enter the store to buy the new iPhone 4S.
New York 7:48 a.m. ET It's almost 10 minutes before they start letting people into the store. Many of the Apple employees have gone downstairs into the cube for a "huddle." I am guessing they will be out soon to begin the cheering. The anticipation is killing me. Well, actually not. Honestly, this launch just doesn't have the same energy and spark as other Apple product launches. But I'm sure they will sell the heck out of these things. My guess is most people who really wanted the iPhone 4S preordered it online. Smart move, if you ask me.
People have been leaving apples, flowers, and notes in front of the Apple store on Fifth Avenue to honor the late Steve Jobs, who died last week.
(Credit: CNET/Sarah Tew)New York 7:40 a.m. ET: Apple employees are starting to gather. They haven't started cheering yet. I overhead one worker tell a passerby that the crowd is not as big as theiPad 2 launch. It definitely seems like things are a big more subdued here.
An Apple employee gives people tickets as they line up.
(Credit: CNET/Sarah Tew)New York 7:30 a.m. ET:David, who didn't want his last name used, arrived at the iPhone store on Fifth Avenue at 11 p.m. last night. He said he felt like a schmuck when I told him that there was barely any line at the Upper West Side store. "Shoulda woulda coulda," he said. "But at least I had the experience. I've only lived in New York City for three weeks." David and others also got some free stuff from Otterbox, which makes waterproof iPhone cases, and Gazelle, which buys used gadgets such as the iPhone. Unfortunately, they were giving away rain ponchos and a big yellow Otterbox case, but sadly it was not an actual Otterbox for the iPhone 4S.
Jessica Mellow and Keenen Thompson were the first people to get in line for the iPhone 4S. They have been waiting since September 26. And they're sponsored by Gazelle.
(Credit: CNET/Sarah Tew)New York 7:25 a.m. ET:
Before heading to the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue, I stopped by the Apple store on the Upper West Side. The first person in line there got there at 10 p.m. last night. At 6 a.m. the line was halfway down 67th St. And people really started showing up around 5 a.m. Laurel Moll, who is buying her first iPhone, said she would have bought the phone online, but she waited too long. She wanted to get the phone from AT&T. And even though AT&T isn't sold out of the device, she wouldn't have been able to get it for Friday. So she and her friend decided to wait in line.
New York 7:15 a.m. ET: The first people in line, Jessica Mellow, 26, and Keenen Thompson, 21, got here on September 26. But most people standing in line got here late last night. Tony Medina, who is one of the first 50 or so people in line, got to the store at 11 p.m. He braved the violent thunderstorm in the middle of the night to make sure he got his iPhone 4S today. He already has an iPhone 4, but wanted to get the iPhone 4S for the improved camera and the Siri personal assistant app. The first thing he will ask Siri: "Wake me up at 3 p.m." It's been a long, wet night in the Big Apple.
The line for the iPhone 4S at the Apple store on Fifth Avenue went down 58th Street along of FAO Schwartz.
(Credit: CNET/Sarah Tew)New York 7:00 a.m. ET: While the line is long here at the Apple store on Fifth Avenue in New York City, the plaza next to the big cube is not filled as much as usual. This may be due to the renovation of the glass cube. People are lined up down 58th Street along FAO Schwartz and around the block.
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