Shortly after 8:30 this morning, UPS dropped a small diminutive box off at reception with my name on it. Apple’s 5th generation iPhone has arrived in California and the mayhem continues. As I sit here wondering when is a good time to start trying to swap from one phone to the other I am listening to my peers complaining about how difficult it is to get their own new phones activated – maybe this phone will be a success after all.

Some interesting side notes:

• Steve Wozniac, Apple’s co-founder, was enjoying the excitement at the Los Gatos, California store last night. He “didn’t want to miss” this great event, even though we all know that he probably has two of the new phones hanging out in his Prius. As an aside, it’s nice to see that he’s taken the high-road and isn’t be accused of “cutting the line” like previous releases.
• The Pleasanton, California Apple store had about 250 people in line with some suggesting that the store had “1000′s of phones” of unknown configuration for unknown carriers. With the ever increasing number of SKUs that Apple has to manage for this release, it’s easy to see how 1000′s could quickly turn into “you’re not getting the phone you want.”
• Local news in the San Francisco Bay Area has caught the fever and are reporting regularly about all the people waiting for their new phone and how successful the launch is. In typical Apple fashion; yes, the launch is successful, woo hoo!

Share your stories, what are people seeing in the queue waiting for their Apple phone?

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