Hsu Wei-chun stood in line for seven hours to be the first person to receive Apple Inc’s iPhone 4 at a Chunghwa Telecom sales event that began at midnight yesterday in Taipei.
Hsu said he was not concerned about reports of a defect in the iPhone 4’s antenna design that could affect reception, as the large number of base stations in Taiwan ensures a good connection.
Hsu and hundreds like him helped the Taiwan debut of the iPhone 4 break a number of records after the country’s major telecoms operators splashed out on advertising the long-awaited device.
PHOTO: SAM YEH, AFP
Total sales figures from Far EasTone Telecommunications Co, Taiwan Mobile Co and Chunghwa Telecom Co — the authorized service providers for the iPhone in Taiwan — were better than previous single-day figures for any other mobile phone.
Far EasTone sold 3,000 iPhone 4s between midnight and 6am yesterday at retailers throughout Taiwan, company spokeswoman Alison Kao (高治華) said.
Taiwan Mobile sold 600 iPhones, while Taiwan’s largest telecoms operator, Chunghwa Telecom, restricted the initial sale of the device to just 400 pre-order clients.
PHOTO: SAM YEH, AFP
Prices for the iPhone 4 varied from free to NT$14,900, depending on what package the customer chose. It was the first time the telecoms carriers began selling a mobile phone at midnight and the companies deployed a combined workforce of 500, setting a record for the most telecoms company employees selling a single mobile phone.
In addition, three of the country’s telecoms carriers had never before debuted the same mobile phone model at the same time.
Each of the telecoms operators is expected to invest at least NT$20 million (US$630,000) marketing the phone — another record.
Far EasTone took the lead on Thursday, placing full-page ads on the front pages of four major newspapers. The telecoms operators each held a live concert in Taipei on Thursday evening to attract even more consumers. At its event, Far EasTone hired an actor dressed as a terra-cotta warrior, a stiltwalker and a unicycle rider, creating a carnival atmosphere.
An estimated 300,000 to 400,000 of the previous iPhone models — iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS — have been sold in Taiwan. More than 200,000 people placed pre-orders for the new phones, but the three operators can only offer 45,000 to 60,000 in the first batch.
Hsu, who took a series of photographs at the event so he could document the experience on his blog, said he hoped future iPhone models could be made available in Taiwan earlier.
It took the iPhone 4 about three months to make its debut in Taiwan after it was first launched in the US, Japan, France, Germany and the UK in June.
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