Appletell

Our fellow Apple fans in South Carolina can finally rejoice, as their first Apple Store is to open this weekend. Located at 301 King St. in Charleston, it will open on Saturday, July 6th at 10 A.M. There are no workshops scheduled yet and no word on whether this store will open with a fresh stock of iPhones behind its doors. Customers will be able to meet with the Genius Bar, schedule One to One Lessons, and have a good time with their fellow geeks.

If you plan on attending this opening, be sure to take some photos for us and tell us all about your experience. If they will have iPhones, I’m sure the line will be nice and long on opening day. If not, you’re in luck. I look forward to seeing more expansion from Apple in their retail department, because all of these Apple Stores are really helping drive product sales.

Via [Apple Store Page]

Taking the first two weeks or so of the first gen iPhone sales in comparison to the iPhone 3G sales will show that the iPhone 3G sales are about twice as fast. The main reasons for this differential are most likely the lower initial price, as well as the hot, new software. Chief executive Randall Stephenson said, “In the days following our exclusive U.S. launch of this new device, powered by the nation’s fastest 3G wireless network, customer response has been everything we had anticipated and more.” This news comes along with large Apple 3Q profits, which took place even before the iPhone was released.

Although we won’t know for certain how many iPhones were sold until Apple tells us, it is definitely a lot more than the first generation (keep in mind, it was released in many more countries this time). Despite the activation problems, the iPhone 3G still managed to sell out in pretty much every single location except eBay. This product has been a huge success for both Apple and AT&T, and I don’t see it stopping anytime soon.

Via [AppleInsider]

The iPhone 3G was such a big hit that there were lines for the product even for a few days after it came out. This was bound to bring shortages, and it did. In fact, Piper Jaffray & Co. analyst Gene Munster says, “I bet we’ll see these problems for another two to four weeks. Early demand has been more than they expected [because] they knocked it out of the park on the first weekend.” He may be on to something as Apple’s stock website is still showing low amounts in most places.

Mr. Munster says this low stock could be from unexpected, sustained demand for the iPhone, as last year there was only a large initial demand. “This is a more sustained outage, and the demand seems to be sustained,” he said. Furthermore, he points out that this year the iPhone was launched world wide, meaning less stock for the United States.

Details after the break.

MORE »

Apple had themselves quite a nice weekend, even if many of its customers didn’t. The company reported today that over one million iPhone 3Gs were sold by Sunday.

“iPhone 3G had a stunning opening weekend,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “It took 74 days to sell the first one million original iPhones, so the new iPhone 3G is clearly off to a great start around the world.”

I’m not sure exactly how they pulled this off, considering the long lines and iPhone activation delays caused by server problems for those trying to activate their new iPhone 3G (and for those of us just trying to get the iPhone 2.0 upgrade). Considering many people were turned away or left in frustration, imagine the weekend Apple would’ve had. These numbers are further indication that a popular, well-made product can survive early troubles. I’m sure most iPhone 3G owners would tell you it was worth the hassle.

That same weekend, iPhone and iPod touch customers downloaded more than 10 million applications from the new App Store. The groundbreaking App Store now has more than 800 native applications, including over 200 offered for free and more than 90 percent available for less than $10. I expect sales will taper off once the excitement wears off, but I’ll admit I did download some free apps I’ll probably never use to just to see iPhone 2.0 in action. The only app I paid for was Freeverse’s Wingnuts Moto Racer, and it’s been a hit with those to whom I’ve shown it...and has won over a few iPhone converts.

How about all you iPhone and iPod touch owners? What was the first app you downloaded from the App Store?

Via [Apple] Product [iPhone]

FROM GAMERTELL - Jobs tells the New York Times that 25 percent of the first 500 applications at the store are free and the other 90 percent of applications are offered for $9.99 or less to help entice customers and developers…
MORE »

Six and one-half hours in line at the Apple Store, added to the three hours spent waiting in line at at AT&T store, only to be told that they had run out. Is the white, 16 gig iPhone 3G worth it? Totally. The excitement felt by Ralphie upon receipt of his Red Ryder BB gun is comparable.

Although demand will begin to fall off as time goes on, there are a few tips for eager iPhone fans who have yet to get their hands on one of these amazing devices. Check them out after the break.

MORE »

Those of you who were waiting until the activation process was sorted out to get an iPhone 3G, wait no more. After the initial rush to activate thousands of people and get past the very unresponsive servers, the problem is now fixed. iPhone 3G customers are more easily and quickly activating their phones. Whether July 11th’s issues were on Apple’s side (iTunes 7.7) or AT&T’s side (activation servers) is still unknown, but I am just glad it has been fixed.

After being amongst the first people let into the Mayfair Wisconsin Apple Store July 11th, I thought I was in pretty good shape. I was very, very wrong. Within a matter of minutes of the 8 a.m. opening, the problem had become known, and Apple employees were sending people home. It wasn’t until around 6 p.m. that I finally got my phone activated and ready for use. Thankfully, those initial woes are now over, so you can buy an iPhone 3G with more assurance. You have no reason to wait now, so go get yours!

If you weren’t able to get your iPhone 3G on July 11th because your local store ran out of stock or the line took too long, you can now head over to Apple’s website and make sure that won’t happen again. With a new web page, you can check for iPhone 3G availability. However, the website only works after 9 PM, so you must check after then if you want to make sure stock will be available. As expected, you search by state and then store.

Apple’s web page reads, “The Apple Retail Store likely has your iPhone 3G in stock. You can check the most up-to-date availability right here. Shipments of iPhone 3G arrive most days, and availability is updated nightly.”

There you have it. Despite the disastrous iPhone launch yesterday, many places managed to run out of stock, especially AT&T stores (which did receive less in the first place). This will be a very helpful site to Apple customers.

Via [Apple.com]

Well, we’re not even a couple hours into it, and already we’ve received a tip about a potential security risk with the new iPhone 2.0 firmware. The update enables the Exchange features on the iPhone. Without seeking any approval from the company at which he works, our informant was able to hook the iPhone up to the corporate network’s Exchange service.

This could be great for the employee, but it’s definitely not a good thing for the company to have people bringing unauthorized devices onto the Exchange service. Whether this proves to be a legit risk that Apple will have to address or is something that can be easily averted on the IT end, I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough.

Appletell contributor Josh Holat may not have been in an iPhone line since last Friday, but he’s at the Mayfair Wisconsin Apple Store now, waiting for his chance to get his hands on the iPhone 3G. As he updates us, we’ll update you, complete with photos and box opening coverage.

Jump past the break for Josh’s updates.

MORE »