One of us! One of us!
Apple's iPhone 4S went on sale across Australia this morning to far less fanfare than has been seen in previous years, with most eager iPhone shoppers in Sydney choosing the flagship Apple Store itself rather than the telco alternatives.
Stores selling the iPhone 4S opened at 8am this morning, rather than at midnight, as they have done in previous years, prompting a far more civil and noticeably less festive experience than seen for the launches of the iPhone 3G, 3GS and 4.
Apple staffers lined the windows across the levels of Sydney's flagship store in the city's CBD, welcoming a crowd of several hundred customers waiting on the street below.
Big day in the garden of Eden
The Apple Store saw the bulk of this morning's crowd, with a queue curling around the block.
Meanwhile ...
The queue at Optus was far shorter, with the added bonus of not having dozens of blue T-shirt-wearing Apple-ites peering down at you from the floors above.
Pick up, take away
Optus reps told us this morning that it had received "tens of thousands" of pre-orders, but that they didn't expect long queues after offering customers the option to have the new phone delivered to their homes or to an Optus store nearer to them.
Memories
This is the scene from the same street corner at last year's iPhone 4 launch in July. The queues went around the corner despite the freezing temperatures.
Rolling out the red rug
Directly across the street from Optus, Vodafone rolled out the red carpet for its most eager customers, and provided a star-studded line-up to entertain them.
Viva la Next G
Telstra opted for a carnival theme to celebrate the launch, wrapping its early birds in feather boas.
Cor blimey!
Although Telstra provided live music and refreshments, the crowd outside the big T seemed enthralled by the enthusiasm across the street at Apple.
Worth the wait
Telstra provided us with this pic from its flagship store in Melbourne. The smile says it all.