A few seconds ago, at 8:00AM on the dot, the doors to Australia’s flagship Apple Store on George Street in the middle of the Sydney CBD were unlocked and pulled open, and a flood of people were welcomed inside by Apple staff. This is how it looked.
A quick head count puts the line at 157 cold, wet people… pic.twitter.com/DLdLls7apQ
— Lindsay (@mysparetech) September 24, 2015
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Here’s what it looked like, seconds before the doors opened. (Thanks for the shout-out, Lindsay — 28 seconds in!)
And they’re inside! The doors open for the first iPhone 6s and 6s Pluses to be sold around the world.
The line is still stretching quite a way down George St…
Camping out for more than a fortnight, friend of Gizmodo and occasional editor Lindsay Handmer was first in line to buy the new iPhones on George St — and he intends to auction them off for charity, with proceeds going to Mission Australia. You can bid on the phones here, with both auctions closing at midday.
Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and Virgin stores across the country have also opened their doors as of a few seconds ago, although stocks are expected to be extremely limited. If you hear of any store being out of stock, let us know in the comments. Lucky pre-orderers — those who were first online when orders started at 5:01PM last Saturday — should start to receive their phones by courier today as well.
For anyone who doesn’t pick up a new iPhone today, you’ll probably have to wait at least a couple of weeks to find stock. Of course, if you’re looking for a less popular model — a silver or space grey iPhone 6s, in a larger storage capacity — you might strike it lucky after a bit of shopping around today. Again, if you’re fortunate enough to find your particular phone just by luck, or if you stumble onto a store with plenty in stock, leave a comment!
By the way, if you’re thinking of what to do with your old phone — if you don’t want to sell it or to pass it on to a less fortunate friend — then give some thought to Mobile Muster. It’s Australia’s phone industry’s official recycling program, it’s a not-for-profit, and it means your phone won’t end up in some landfill somewhere leaching heavy metals and toxic chemicals into the soil below.
If you’ve picked up a new iPhone 6s or 6s Plus, let us know — what colour, what capacity, from which telco or retailer — in the comments!