Today’s the day!
What’s that, you say? You’re not sure what makes Sept. 21 “the day”?
Well, then, it’s probably—no, it’s certainly—too late for you, my friend. Too late, that is, to be among the first to purchase the latest Apple smartphone, the iPhone 5, which hits Apple stores this morning.
Briefly, that is. Until they immediately sell out.
Hardcore Apple-ites, those who pride themselves upon procuring the latest, ever-evolving version of Cupterino’s svelte-‘n’-snazzy products, got in line in front of some Apple stores as early as last Friday in New York City—eight days before the new iPhones went on sale.
For some, the simple joy of owning the latest Apple gizmo was motivation enough to go “urban camping,” as 27-year-old New Yorker Jessica Mellow dubs it. “Most people would never get to do this,” she told USA Today. “Most people would never want to do this. But to each their own. … People call us crazy. And they might be right. But at least we’re having fun.”
For the Apple true believers, USA Today writer Laura Petrecca says, it’s not just about purchasing the latest-and-greatest gadget. It’s about community, technophile-style. “The payoff can be big for those who wait for the iPhone,” Petrecca writes. “They not only get a new device, they also get to enjoy the process of mingling with others who share their Apple passion, as well as the bragging rights that come with sticking it out.”
For others, though, it’s about more than being the first in their row of cubicles to have an iPhone 5. It’s about money and marketing. According to the Los Angeles Times, the first person in line in San Francisco isn’t even sure he wants the phone. Instead, Charlie Hufnagel pocketed $1,500 from taskrabbit.com to sit in line for five days promoting that site. “The hours are weird, but I get to meet a lot of interesting people,” said the unemployed 24-year-old. “I do feel a little like a zoo animal.”
Likewise, New Yorker Hazem Sayed, 54, nabbed the coveted No. 1 spot in line there to promote his social media app Vibe. It’s the third time he’s played the Apple line-promotion game. “It would be hard to get the same amount of publicity for a small company like we are in any other way,” Sayed told the Los Angeles Times. “It’s certainly worth the week of effort and the week of time.”
Still, Jessica Mellow insists that it’s about the experience, not the marketing (never mind that she too has a blog she’s promoting, iphonewhatever.com, even as she wears a free T-shirt promoting the used electronics company Gazelle). “Anyone who thinks we’re doing it just for some sort of promotions—you really think we’d sleep in the ground for eight days?” Mellow says. “We’re doing it for the experience, because we like Apple and because you meet a lot of cool people. No matter what the motive, I think most of us are Apple fans.”
I’ve stood in line overnight for something I really, really wanted exactly once in my life: Def Leppard tickets in 1987, if you must know. (And, for the record, someone briefly pulled a knife on me because I mistakenly camped out at the very front of the line instead of the end of it. Yikes!) These days, however, I’m generally content to wait for stuff I think I have to have (although I have been known to go a bit overboard on the occasional eBay auction every now and then).
What about you? Did you get in line for a new iPhone this week? Have you gotten in line way in advance for anything else lately (like a good seat at The Dark Knight Rises or a really cheap Blu-ray player at Best Buy last Christmas?) Or are you more likely to think someone who would spend hours or days waiting in line for something is crazy—no matter how much they’re getting paid or how cool the prize at the end might be?
As for me, well, I think I’ll just keep snapping the broken back cover onto my ancient Nokia dumbphone as long as I reasonably can.
Maybe at least until the iPhone 6 next September, that is …
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