It's no secret that I'm a major Apple fanboy. I'm one of the people that camp overnight at the Apple store just to be one of the first to get my hands on new products. June 24, 2010 was my 3rd time camping out for an iPhone launch. I've owned all 4 iPhones so far, but had last year's 3GS model delivered to my doorstep on launch day 2009. This year, thanks to a combination of server errors and line nostalgia, I camped out again.
The aforementioned combination of server errors is my first of many issues with this year's iPhone launch. By now, it's well known that new iPhone models are announced at WWDC, the Worldwide Developers Conference, in San Francisco, California every June. The iPhone is then available for purchase as quickly as one week later, which was the case for the 3GS last year, or as long as 4 weeks later, which was the case for the 3G in 2008. Last year, Apple added the ability to pre-order the iPhone and gave the choice to reserve a unit for in-store pick up or home delivery, both on launch day. The pre-order model was extremely successful last year. I was able to pre-order my phone and it arrived on launch day as planned, no hiccups at all. This year was another story. The time at which the pre-order site goes live is never provided, but rumors were flying that it would go live at Midnight Alaskan time, or 3am for me (Central). I stayed up. I tried to pre-order countless times, but it was impossible to do so. After about 2 hours, I gave up and went to bed. I got up about 4 hours later to try again with still no luck. I had pretty much given up, but I tried once more around 9pm that day and got through... for a July 16th delivery, which was unacceptable for an early adopter like myself.
Since my friend and I were unable to pre-order our iPhones, we decided we would camp out. We had gone back and fourth about what time we wanted to get in line. At first, I suggested 2am since that was 5 hours before the store opened and, after reading the launch forums at MacRumors.com, I was confident that this was early enough. Launch day eve came and I called my preferred Apple store (at Bayshore Town Center in Milwaukee). I was informed that mall security prevented lines from forming prior to 3am. My friend and I decided to still go at 2am because we could wait in the car for an hour if need be. Around 10pm or so, however, my friend got a text message saying that a line had already formed and about 30 people were waiting. The sourced seemed pretty unreliable and considering the 3am line time was confirmed, I mostly shrugged it off. My friend and I decided to get there by midnight, though, just in case. We figured that if the source was indeed wrong, we could have a drink at Bar Louie, a nice bar that overlooks the Apple store area. When we arrived, however, the source was unfortunately correct. Arriving just after midnight, we were 51st and 52nd in line, respectively. We were slightly annoyed, but I was still confident that Apple would have more than 52 units available.
The launch line was pretty fun - which is why I had launch line nostalgia from missing it in 2009. I began talking to #50, a young male who was buying the iPhone for his mother, not himself. Once I learned that, I asked him the questions that Apple employees would be asking a few hours later. I pretty much saved his iPhone life since, had I not told him he needed to be an authorized user on the AT&T account, he would have been turned away after 12 hours of waiting. I also began talking to #53, Matt, and #54, Ericka, whose names I actually didn't learn until after about 10 hours. I've met up with both of them since the launch and am happy to have met them so I guess I will wait in line next year, too, just to meet cool Apple-minded folks!
Once Apple opened at 7am, madness ensued. They were processing 30 pre-orders for every 1 non-pre-order. The pre-order line was zipping by while we sat, sweating and waiting. Once the sun rose, it was extremely hot outside. Apple employees were nice enough to pass out bottled water, coffee, umbrellas to create some shade, and eventually even some snacks. Thankfully, no one passed out at my store, but 80º and direct sun made that a possibility. Approximately 5 1/2 hours later, I finally got inside. Completing the sale was effortless and I was evan able to cancel my mother's July pre-order and snag her one that day, something she was very pleased with.
For the most part, I love my iPhone 4. I definitely prefer the industrial design over the former "pretty" plastic shell. I wanted a white phone like I had for the 3G and 3GS, and was pretty pissed off that Apple didn't speak up about it's disappearance until too late, but I'm fine with having black. I purchased a Bumper as well - in black since colors are not yet available - and hate it. It is ill fitting and just ugly. After a few days, I ditched the Bumper to see how it would handle being naked. So far, so good. I have noticed the reception issues that people have been talking about (see this lawsuit for more on that), but have not experienced any screen yellowing or broken glass - and yes, I have dropped it already, from about 3 1/2 feet onto hardwood.
If I was just reviewing the iPhone 4 itself, I'd give it an A-. It's definitely the best iPhone yet except for the signal issues. If I make sure to hold it differently, I get the best signal AT&T can deliver. The 5MP camera with flash, Apple's A4 chip, and 512MB of RAM are really nice additions. I'm also reviewing the launch, however, so the grade is going down. The fact that Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, told us that White iPhones would be available on June 24th and they weren't is more than just annoying, it seems like intentional and negligent misrepresentation as the lawsuit claims. If Apple had come clean earlier, I would have been slightly less upset, but the fact that Walt Mossberg got a white one and I didn't really pisses me off. Second, misrepresenting line formation information is unacceptable. If I had waited until 3am and then not gotten an iPhone, I may have been uncontrollable. While this may not be Apple's fault entirely, they know lines will form and as such, should communicate with the various store locations' security. Third, if you're going to take pre-orders, make sure the system works and if it doesn't, nullify those that did get through so launch day is fair. Fourth, do not allow pre-orders and non-pre-orders into the store unequally. They know they have a phone waiting, they can wait or come back later. Fifth, set up some tents along the line. Protecting your loyal customers from rain or direct sun should be a priority. Sixth, do not allow customers into the store for other products. I know, it sounds like bad business to turn away people who might want to buy a $1000 laptop, but they can do so any other day or online without taking away employees from launch activities. Seventh, be honest about your supplies and tell those people in line that will not be able to get a phone. I was told that when I was in the store, only about 10 phones were left. If this is true, the 100+ people still in line would be turned away. I'm surprised a mob didn't break out with 100 tired people being told to go away. All in all, the launch was a mess. I had fun, but it was a big mess and gets a F. Averaging the launch grade and the actual iPhone 4 grade results in a D. D's are passing, but I expect better from Apple.
Apple's iPhone 4 and Launch barely passes The Trav Test with a D.
• Category: Products, Wireless, AT&T, Apple, iPhone, launch
• Location: Apple (specifically at Bayshore Town Center, Milwaukee)
• Cost: $199 or $299, plus 12 hours of my time and 3 gallons of sweat.
• Ease of use: iPhone-easy. Launch-difficult
• The Trav Test grade: D
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