Greg Packer (left), and David Clayman, New York City's first iPhone 'waiters'
(Credit: Caroline McCarthy/CNET Networks)NEW YORK--They're heeeeeee-ere.
Actually, I owe you all an apology. When I first showed up at the Fifth Avenue Apple Store earlier this afternoon, I didn't spot anyone waiting in line yet. That's because I didn't spot the one person in line, who'd gotten there at 5 a.m. EDT. Security personnel for the building, however, have mandated that Camp iPhone be located off to the side of the building, out of sight of people who are approaching the Apple Store from 59th Street (the nearest subway stop). The Craigslist crowd was assuming that people would have to line up on Wednesday at the earliest. So I figured that it was no surprise that no one was there yet.
But then, around 10 p.m., I checked my Twitter feed and noticed that there were several posts announcing that people had already started to wait in line. So I sprinted to the subway and hopped off at 59th Street...
The two guys in line (there are actually three, but Packer's friend was offsite at the time) couldn't have been more different. Packer, a retired highway maintenance worker from Huntington, N.Y., is the sort of person you'd expect to find waiting in a line for the latest gadgets. He's after the iPhone partially because he's an Apple fan, and partially because it's the hottest item on the market and he wants one. But he's no eBay opportunist, he assured me--he actually wants to keep it. He's also a seasoned "waiter," having stood in line for the PlayStation 3 last November at the Roosevelt Field mall on Long Island. He chose Manhattan, this time, because he "learned from PlayStation about how security will not let you line up at a mall for hours on hours." He's also started a blog to document the week.
The early stages of Camp iPhone.
(Credit: Caroline McCarthy/CNET Networks)Clayman, on the other hand, looks exactly like the sort of person you'd expect to see waiting for an Apple product. A recent University of Chicago graduate, he's slight and soft-spoken and wears the black-frame glasses found on many a Genius Bar employee. But the funny thing is, Clayman doesn't actually want the iPhone. He's blogging the experience, hoping to learn a bit about New York before he starts a full-time job. "My parents thought I was nuts when I told them," he related to me, adding that he's planning to buy the iPhone and then sell it and donate the proceeds to the Taproot Foundation.
That seems very Apple of him. Bono would approve, I'm sure.
For food, there's a hot dog stand as well as a ubiquitous Mr. Softee truck on the corner. The 24-hour Apple store has bathrooms (Packer informed me that its downtown sibling in SoHo does not), not to mention computers with e-mail access. There's also a Starbucks several blocks away. Both Packer and Clayman said that they're accepting donations while waiting in line--Packer to pay for food (um, if you're short on cash, is the $600 iPhone really a good idea?), and Clayman to add to his Taproot Foundation donation.
Near a 5th Avenue hot dog stand, metal barricades are on hand for when more people start showing up.
(Credit: Caroline McCarthy/CNET Networks)The early iPhone queuers, as well as the others who will inevitably be joining them over the next few days, will have to deal with some blistering heat--highs in the mid-90s Tuesday--as well as some thunderstorms that are predicted for Tuesday and Wednesday. Especially considering that they're right near metal barricades, that could get dangerous. But when I asked them how they plan to deal with potential weather hazards, they both said, "We'll deal with it."
(Credit:
Apple)
Whenever something's a legitimate social phenomenon these days, you can typically follow the zeitgeist on Craigslist. The impending Apple iPhone is no exception.
I was inspired by a recent Cult of Mac post to hunt on Craigslist for some of my favorite "Buy me an iPhone!" or "I'll buy you an iPhone!" ads, which I've detailed below. Interestingly enough, they were restricted to the biggest of big cities, as far as I could tell (New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston) and I could track down only one that promised a genuinely wacky trade (White Stripes tickets for an iPhone).
Nevertheless, I think it's safe to say that things will be kind of nuts starting around 6 a.m. on Friday. Maybe even earlier.
Easier money than forwarding that chain letter? (Santa Monica, Calif.)
iPhone LineSitter Wanted - Easy $. "I am looking for several people who will wait in line for me to buy the new Apple iPhone on Friday, June 29...You need to be reliable, mature, and patience will definitely be a plus! What you do while you're in line is your business, but unless you devise a foolproof strategy, you cannot leave the line."
Wow, Jack and Meg just got shafted (Chicago, Ill.)
TRADE: WHITE STRIPE TICKETS BOTH SHOWS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY - $1. "Got a few extra tickets for the BOTH White Stripes, total of 10 extra tickets. I brought them on the presale, so they being ship to me. I am looking for an Iphone. I am going , and new to chicago so will be going alone. so 10 are up for grabs...10 tickets for an iphone. STRAIGHT UP! which is RETAIL for RETAIL. so it is fair. if nobody has an iphone for trade might look for something else. but i want an iphone. not sure what white stripe tickets are selling for, but they did soldout very quickly."
Oh, the opportunism (SoHo, N.Y.)
Apple iPhone - For Sale. "I will be buying a few iPhones next Friday, June 29th...I am charging approximately $150 over the cost of the iPhone (with tax)...4GB iPhone: $700...8GB iPhone: $800...When the initial batch of iPhones are all sold, the prices will jump considerably, so reserve one with me now. I am honest and reliable." Yeah, but aren't they only going to let you buy one?
The bidding war is on (New York, N.Y.)
Wait in line for Iphone for me! "I need someone to wait in line for an iPhone for me. The iPhone is supposed to go on sale Friday June 29th at 6pm. You could wait in line at any of the three Apple Stores on Long Island (Smithtown Mall, Walt Whitman, or Roosevelt Field)...I'm not sure when you need to be in line, but I will find out this week." The bidding's on at DoMyStuff.com. Doesn't look like you'll really make a whole lot of bank on this one.
This is what sick days are for (Cupertino, Calif.)
I want an iphone, but i cant skip work. "I want an iphone! but I cant skip work. I'm looking for someone willing to stand in line for me starting thursday afternoon, camp out, and trade spots with me around 4-5pm friday...It seems like the asking price for people to stand in line is 200-300 dollars (however i have seen offers for 150). but I want to make SURE that i get one, and I'm pretty much willing to pay the 200-300 extra for it...contact me and make me an offer - if i dont get any, i may have to camp out myself and just get in trouble with work :)"
WEDNESDAY MORNING?!? (New York., N.Y.)
Updated: Get Paid To Wait In Line... For An iPhone (Midtown). "Ok, so here's the deal. I need an iPhone. Like, really need an iPhone. It's so bad, I've taken to carrying around my paper cut-out just to get used to the size...ANYWAY, I'm looking for 1 or 2 industrious folks to setup camp outside the 5th Avenue Apple Store 6:00am, Wednesday the 27th until 6:00pm on Friday the 29th. That's 60 hours of chilling and doing nothing... and getting paid...Interested applicants should have experience waiting in line. You are responsible for any supplies, food, etc. that you may need during your stay. If you want to be considered for this rather bizarre, very odd, and slightly fun assignment, please get in touch right away..." The post then links to the Gridskipper camp-out guide.
Professional? Do you have references? (Dedham, Mass.)
Professional Line waiter for Iphone - $250. "Attention all apple fanboys/girls, are you interested in the apple's newest gadget, the iPhone? Do you want to avoid the long lines, and be reserved a spot near the front? Well I am offering the perfect service for you: I will arrive at the Dedham at&t at whatever time you request, starting from 6 p.m thurday night, to anytime after that. My fee will depend on what time you have me start at, anywhere between $250 and $300. At sometime around 5:30, we will swap places, allowing you to be near the front! Here is how payment will work, meet me there when I am starting my campout, and pay me half. After that, at around 5:30, you will give me the other half, and we will switch spots in line. Please respond." If he's a professional, I want to see documentation that he managed to get a PS3 on opening night.
OK, we know you want an iPhone (Deer Park, N.Y.)
Need placeholder for overnight at AT&T before iPhone release. "I want an iPhone. I need someone to go to the AT&T store on Deer Park Ave. in Deer Park on Thursday PM 6/28 and wait until I come about 8 AM Friday morning to take the place in line. I would meet you at the store the PM before."
Your mission, should you choose to accept it (Santa Monica, Calif.)
Looking for someone to wait in line for an iPhone. "I am looking for someone who can wait in line for me to buy the new Apple iPhone on Friday, June 29 - I have to travel for work that day, or I'd be out waiting myself. Our target is the Apple Store at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. The gig starts at 5am and ends at about 5pm. You need to be reliable and focused on the success bonus...Let's make this happen." This message will self-destruct in 30 seconds.
You're still going to have to pay me a lot more than $75 (Queens, N.Y.)
CAN YOU WAIT ON LINE TO GET THE iPHONE FOR ME? "Not doing anything this Friday? Wanna make a quick $75? Wait on the line for me and/or buy the iPhone for me and you make a quick $75! There are "line-waiters" advertising on CraigsList who are charging $250, but guess what? Nobody is going to pay someone $250 for an already expensive phone! Get real folks! I'm for real, and I will pay someone (you!) $75 to wait on line for me or buy me the iPhone. I would prefer for someone to wait at the Apple Store at the Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City. So if you live out on Long Island and have nothing to do on Friday, June 29, then why not make a quick $75? This offer is ideal for any high school student looking to make a quick easy $75. Email me back as soon as possible so that we can work out the details over the phone. Until then, take care."
(Credit:
Geeksugar)
OK, I really want to know who has this kind of time to spend making these geeky cakes we've been seeing a lot of recently. Apparently, a GeekSugar reader made it for her boyfriend. (Is that the kind of domestic dedication required these days? If so, somebody please get me to a nunnery.) But as a Helio user myself, I acknowledge and appreciate the somewhat cult-like nature of our little MVNO. Cakes, apparently, are the cool way to express that these days.
More photos here.
My verdict: Nice effort. Beautiful, uh, cakesmanship. But I'll stick to my "real" Ocean; it has fewer calories.
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