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iPhone 5s, 5c on sale: fans out in force

The iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c are now available in Australia, with fans lining up just as eagerly as ever to snap up a new phone as quickly as possible. So, which are Australia's favourite colours?

Seamus Byrne Editor, Australia & Asia
Seamus Byrne is CNET's Editor for Australia and Asia. At other times he'll be found messing with apps, watching TV, building LEGO, and rolling dice. Preferably all at the same time.
Seamus Byrne
2 min read

The iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c are now available in Australia, with fans lining up just as eagerly as ever to snap up a new phone as quickly as possible. So, which are Australia's favourite colours?

Jimmy Gunawan buys the first iPhone 5s from Apple's flagship Sydney Apple Store. (Credit: Dave Cheng/CNET)

Real fans were out in force this morning as the new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c hit stores across Australia. Yesterday, the early queues seemed slower than usual, but by this morning, the lines were looping the block just as far as in previous years. Gone were the promotional hijackers looking to plug a radio station, app or startup online service. This was a queue made of iPhone lovers only and the mood was far more positive as a result.

There were a few promo shirt wearers around, but they were simply working the crowd to give away freebies and samples — not to steal the moment from those who wanted the latest iPhones.

At the head of the queue sat Jimmy Gunawan. He was 20th in the queue in 2012, hidden away behind the more prominent promotion seekers who had sat out for days to claim their prize.

For Gunawan, he wants the iPhone 5s for the camera upgrades. "The slow mo, 120fps and the better camera is why I want this. I take a lot of photos. That and the Touch ID thing is a nice addition on top of that."

As the crowds gathered, Apple staff distributed order cards so things would be more organised as doors opened, and were also able to track stock levels for the various options. At Apple's flagship Sydney store on George Street, customers were told the limits would be two of the iPhone 5s per order and 10 of the iPhone 5c.

As reports started to spread across Twitter, it seemed that before doors even opened, the gold iPhone 5s was known to be the model selling out the fastest.

As for the iPhone 5c, speaking to a Telstra spokesperson, we heard that pre-orders put the pink and blue models well ahead of the rest, together accounting for around half of all pre-orders.

Read our full Australian iPhone 5s review and iPhone 5c review now.