iPhone 3GS Launch day video

Last Friday saw the launch of the iPhone 3GS across the globe. We decided to take a plunge and go to London UK’s Apple Flagship store to get our shiny new iPhones, and also to document the day.

The queues in the Apple Store were mad. Hundreds of patient users waiting to part with hard earned cash for a new iPhone 3GS. In true Disney style Apple managed to snake the queues round to cram as many people into the store as possible. Then with military precession they were moved from staging point to staging point before finally getting to the sales guy, and getting the new iPhone.

We also took a trip to the Oxford Street Carphone Warehouse where things where a bit quieter, CPW were only selling the iPhones on 18 month O2 Contracts.

The video covers us tramping round London to find some iPhones, and also shows the quality of the new video camera in the phone. This video was taken in my car whilst in a HR iPhone mount (review to follow shortly…)

Our video follows:
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Apple's London Regent Street Store

Apple retail stores are preparing to launch the iPhone 3G S this Friday.  Looking at the UK flagship store and the San Francisco store all training sessions have been cancelled for the day except a special in SF.  The stores are preparing to open early 8am in London and 7am in San Francisco.

Apple claim you can book a personal shopping appointment for June the 19th and skip the line to buy an iPhone, but if you click on the link you will find that all the Friday appointments have been taken.  Some of the smaller stores still have time slots, but the question is will there be enough stock to go round?

Phone 3G S.
Available June 19th, 8:00 am

Book an iPhone Personal Shopping appointment for June 19th and come right to the front of the line when you arrive at the Apple Retail Store

We have examined the cost of ownership of the new iPhones, but will this be enough to make all the techies out there rush out to get a new iPhone when they still have 7 months left on the existing contract?  Well Apple, O2 and the CarPhone Warehouse in the  UK seem to think so and have all made preparations for floods of customers wanting the new iPhone 3G S.

Of course the team at Wired4iPhone are eager to be amongst the first to get their hands on a bright shiny new iPhone 3G S and we will be in London in the Carphone Warehouse, O2 and Apple Stores filming (and hopefully picking our new iPhones up).

With the 3G S launch this Friday many are now wondering if the PAYG version is going to be on sale also?

Last week, shortly after the 3G S was announced at the WWDC, the web-sites of Apple and CPW (Carphone Warehouse) in the UK were claiming both contract and PAYG were going to available on the day.

However a check this afternoon has Apple and CPW now listing PAYG as ‘Coming Soon’.  O2’s website gives no information at all as to when the 3G S will be available on either contract or PAYG tariffs.

So is this is cynical ploy to ensure that only Contract handsets are sold on Friday or a simple error in communication?

Given the furore over the pricing and the lack of any upgrade offers for existing 3G Contract customers, it isn’t hard to imagine that the availability of PAYG hand-sets might hamper sales?

Why pay off your existing contract and upgrade to the 3G S when you could buy a PAYG model and sway your SIM?