Thirty minutes to go at San Francisco Apple store
The line for the iPhone stretches over to Powell Street, one of the routes taken by San Francisco's iconic cable cars.
(Credit: Tom Krazit/CNET News.com)It's officially happy hour in San Francisco, and as busy commuters make their way home through the Stockton Street area, hundreds are lined up for Apple's iPhone.
The line at the Apple store has now moved around the block and over onto Powell Street, while the lines at the AT&T stores are building as well. There are hundreds in line at the Apple store, while there are about 50 people in line at the AT&T store at Fremont and Market, with about 75 in line at the store a few blocks away at Third and Market.
They're in a celebratory mood at the AT&T store on Third and Market. One gentleman, an intern at a local financial services company he preferred not to name, was standing in line at the request of his bosses. He said the experience had been a lot of fun, especially because he was adjacent to another gentleman who had managed to acquire a number of adult beverages for the front of the line.
Local gadfly Frank Chu is trying to warn iPhone waiters about the control exerted on our lives by the now-800 galaxies.
(Credit: Tom Krazit/CNET News.com)Back over at the Apple store, local psuedo-celebrities such as Frank Chu basked in the crowds, who were getting antsy as 6 p.m. loomed. No one knows exactly how many iPhones Apple will have available, which concerns some at the back of the line who have been waiting for hours.
Still, everyone was peaceful as they lined up in front of the blackened windows of the Apple store. It doesn't appear that CEO Steve Jobs made an appearance at the Fifth Avenue store, but Apple is planning to let reporters inside the San Francisco store to witness the action, so perhaps there's something planned. Stay tuned.
Tom Krazit writes about the ever-expanding world of Internet search, including Google, Yahoo, online advertising, and portals, as well as the evolution of mobile computing. He has written about traditional PC companies, chip manufacturers, and mobile computers, spending the last three years covering Apple. E-mail Tom. 
I don't think supply is an issue. Don't bother with eBay- if you buy a phone there, you don't have a warranty as it's not transferrable. It's better to pay the normal list price at a store than the eBay one. Funky.
Looks like the losers on this one will be the sellers/scam artists.