Apple's iPhone 4S generates big 1st-day sales

Apple's iPhone 4S generates big 1st-day sales

Well before dawn on Friday, Chad Dorsey woke up and made his way to the Apple Store on Stockton Street.
By the time he arrived, at 4:30 a.m., there were already 40 people standing in front of him in line. And by the time the iPhone 4S went on sale, a line of hundreds wrapped around the block.
The arrival of the iPhone 4S in stores drew crowds around the world. Analysts estimated that Apple would sell up to 4 million of them during its opening weekend, according to Bloomberg, a reflection of pent-up demand for a new Apple smart phone and good reviews from critics.
Many waiting in line said they were eager to try Siri, the voice-controlled digital assistant exclusive to the 4S - even if it meant hours in line.
"You gotta do what you gotta do," said Dorsey, a Boston resident who is in town for a technology conference. "The personal assistant is definitely interesting. The advances in intelligence are really impressive."
At 7:30 a.m., dozens of Apple employees emerged from the store to greet customers, running down the line and giving high fives to everyone waiting.
The intense interest in the new device, which arrives 16 months after the debut of the best-selling iPhone 4, contrasted sharply with the reactions of investors on the day it was announced. Apple stock declined slightly Oct. 4 amid concerns that the 4S would not be different enough from its predecessor to spur sales.
But those fears failed to take into account the tens of millions of people who own previous models of the iPhone who had never upgraded to the 4. Robert Castaneda, a Palo Alto resident working in San Francisco, arrived at the AT&T store in Union Square late Friday morning looking to replace his battered old iPhone 3GS.
Castaneda said buying the new phone was an easy decision - his contract was up, and the new phone is faster.
"For me it's just speed," he said.
Sales around the state were exceeding customer expectations, said Terry Stenzel, vice president and general manager for AT&T in Northern California and Reno.
"We had lines in every store - Stockton, Reno, everywhere," Stenzel said. He attributed the foot traffic to customer desire for access to AT&T's HSPA+ network, which independent testing has shown to offer faster data downloads than its rivals.
Sprint, which began selling the iPhone with the launch of the 4S, announced its "best day ever of sales" on Friday, said Fared Adib, Sprint product chief. Sprint said its sales were driven by demand for its plan that offers unlimited data downloading, which is unavailable on rival networks.
"The response to this device by current and new customers has surpassed our expectations and validates our customers' desire for a truly unlimited data pricing plan," Adib said in a statement.
Earlier in the week, Verizon sold out of preorders for the iPhone 4S.
The 4S launch comes nine days after the death from cancer of Apple's iconic co-founder, Steve Jobs. While Friday was arguably Apple's biggest product launch day of the year, the company's home page remained a solemn tribute to its former CEO, with no direct link to the new phone.

Posted in: Apple,Gadget