By Tam Nguyen, Nguoi Viet
IRVINE, Calif. – With about 24 hours to go until the launch of iPhone 6, Steven Foster and his mother took their place at the head of the line at the Apple Store on Thursday, eager to get their hands on the latest release.
The Apple Store in the Irvine Spectrum Center will open at 8 a.m. Friday. On Thursday, the crowd started to gather to line up. Photo by Tam Nguyen/Nguoi Viet
“I made sure to be here early to be first in line, so I came here before the store opened.” Foster said.
He could have pre-ordered the iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus online, but when he ordered his iPhone 5 that way, he didn’t receive it until about a month after the launch date.
This time he wasn’t going to take any chances. By mid-day, the line behind him had grown to about 40 people and was expected to grow through the night. The store opens at 8 a.m. on Friday.
Steven Foster, at right in the blue shirt, and his mother, in the white shirt, make themselves comfortable at the front of the line at the Apple Store in the Irvine Spectrum Center on Thursday, awaiting a chance to buy the iPhone 6 when it is released Friday morning. Photo by Tam Nguyen/Nguoi Viet
Jacob Sarabia was next in line after Foster, also deciding to skip the pre-order route. This was the first time he had decided to line up for a phone purchase, he said. He arrived around 11 a.m., and within minutes, the line behind him had grown.
Sarabia said he plans to buy the iPhone 6 Plus on Friday morning.
“The iPhone 6 Plus is more like a mini iPad and will be more useful to me because I carry my iPad almost everywhere,” Sarabia said.
The end of the line for the iPhone 6 was expected to grow overnight at the Apple Store in Irvine. Photo by Tam Nguyen/Nguoi Viet
Apple unveiled the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus last week. When pre-orders began Monday, 4 million orders were placed in the first 24 hours, exceeding Apple’s initial supply.
The iPhone 6 will have a 4.7-inch screen, and the iPhone 6 plus will have a 5.5-inch screen.
The iPhone 6 starts at $199 with a two-year contract for the 16 GB model, $299 for the 64 GB phone and $399 for 128 GB model. The iPhone 6 Plus will cost an additional $100 for each configuration.
