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Turnout for iPhone 8 Launch in Australia 'Bleak' as Customers Hold Out for Upcoming iPhone X

Thursday September 21, 2017 9:47 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Apple's iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are already available for purchase in countries like New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and China, and in Sydney, one of the first cities where the two devices became available, lines were short and there was little demand for the new smartphones.


The iPhone 8 launch in Sydney saw "a bleak turnout," reports Reuters, with fewer than 30 people lining up outside of the Sydney Apple Store on George Street. In past years, hundreds of people have lined up for new iPhones on release day.

Apple customers on Twitter have also noted shorter lines in other locations.

The perceived lack of demand for the iPhone 8 and mixed reviews about the device caused Apple stock to fall as low as $152.75 on Thursday. Hints of demand issues first popped up last Friday, when iPhone 8 pre-orders kicked off.

Ahead of a standard launch, pre-order supplies of new iPhones often sell out online, but that was not the case with the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus. Hours after the two devices became available for sale, there was still plenty of stock, with September 22 delivery dates available either online or with in-store pickup.

Many customers appear to be waiting for the higher-cost iPhone X, Apple's new flagship device that will become available for pre-order on October 27. Priced starting at $999, the device features an edge-to-edge OLED display, upgraded cameras, and a new facial recognition system.

Supplies of the iPhone X are rumored to be extremely constrained, and it's been suggested that Apple will not be able to supply adequate amounts of the devices to meet demand until well into 2018.

Related Roundup: iPhone 8
[ 389 comments ]

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HardRain
28 months ago
Hold out for X, or just not not getting another iPhone this year?
Rating: 54 Votes
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allenvanhellen
28 months ago
Slap an OLED panel across the whole front of the iPhone SE and sell it for the price of the 8 and they’d have huge demand.
Rating: 41 Votes
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Sevanw
28 months ago
Hahaaaa, they look embarrassed to be there. Lol. And what happens when the lines for the X are also bleak? You're only assuming everyone is waiting for the X.
Rating: 32 Votes
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star_nerdy
28 months ago
Could be worse. I worked for Apple when Verizon first got the iPhone.

I had to setup the displays and get the store ready for want Apple said was going to be a major launch. I had to plan the thing at our store. I spent all night making sure everything was perfect.

We dropped the curtains and there were 4 people at the mall wanting to get iPhones on launch day for the Verizon iPhone. And things didn’t get significantly better over the day.
Rating: 24 Votes
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Jetfire
28 months ago
Saw this problem when Apple started to make colored iPhones. Used to be one iPhone with only storage size being the difference. They you had different carrier models plus storage size. Then color, carrier and storage size. Then physical sizes, color, carrier, and storage size. Then old models, se, color carrier and storage size. Now two new flagship models, physical size, old models, se, color, carrier and storage size. Watch is even worse.

I wonder what Steve would say if he saw this.

Think he would let Tim do this?
Rating: 24 Votes
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donster28
28 months ago
I'm not at all surprised. The iPhone X is most anticipated than the 7s...oh sorry... 8.
Rating: 23 Votes
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joueboy
28 months ago
There are probably fewer than that to line up to get the iPhone X. People are getting smarter and that $1000 price that's even higher in other countries. It's ridiculous to know sometimes that even countries that make less money than Americans actually pay more to get an iPhone.
Rating: 18 Votes
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JPack
28 months ago
CNET | iPhone X: Forget the experts, here’s what real people think ('https://www.cnet.com/news/iphone-x-forget-the-experts-heres-what-real-people-think/')
Rating: 16 Votes
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BruceEBonus
28 months ago
A company as big and rich as Apple can't fart about with minor upgrades in this day and age. The competition has caught up now and are actually two years ahead in their own 'innovations'. By the time the oddly named X launches wonders of Face ID will have paled further. Samsung have had bezelless OLED screens over a year i.e. And induction charging double that. The novelty isn't the concept of these things it's that Apple has adopted them at last and lost th stuff people wanted (headphone jacks) then hiked up the price. The only thing keeping folks from going Android is the fear of leaving the Apple ecosystem. I can't blame them. Jobs' original foresight and legacy of simplicity and inter-usability can still be seen today a decade on. Such was his amazing ability to demand the best. Get it out there now before the rivals and challenge the markets laziness and complacency. No more. The simplicity has gone. As has the ground breaking stuff. And that's what the newer users can't see. Loyalty lasts just so long before common sense and finances take over. Eventually.
Rating: 16 Votes
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Mr. Donahue
28 months ago
I wanted to upgrade this year but it's too expensive and I don't like the direction Apple is going. I never thought I'd say it but yeah. Maybe if they release an updated SE model I'll upgrade to that from my current launch day iPhone 6.
Rating: 14 Votes

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