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launch day posts

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic launch dubbed 'stunning success;' 120 Russians can't be wrong

by Tim Stevens posted Nov 28th 2008 @ 9:31AM

We love covering the antics of gadget-crazed buyers on launch day as much as anyone, whether it be die-hard gamers waiting for a PS3 or international fanatics clamoring for Apple's latest. Sometimes, though, these big launch sellouts feel a bit... contrived. Such is the case with Nokia's 5800 XpressMusic, dropped first in Russia on Wednesday ahead of its worldwide release yesterday. An internal memo (conveniently posted onto the Mobile-Review forums by a Nokia employee) talks up the usual release day shenanigans: buyers camping for days, bribery attempts for spots in line, inventory disappearing in minutes, and an inevitable prediction that this thing will be bigger than the iPhone. However, while the memo liberally quotes from the LiveJournal musings of Mobile-Review editor Eldar Murtazin, it skips over one choice bit of information he provided: a measly 120 phones were available at this "flagship" location in Moscow.

[Thanks, pops]

AT&T announces iPhone 3G pricing plans

by Joshua Topolsky posted Jul 1st 2008 @ 9:44AM

Finally, a piece of news we can actually do something with. AT&T today announced its pricing structure for the next iteration of Apple's iPhone -- which you can plunk down money for come 8 am, July 11th. There's not much that's surprising here -- new customers and those eligible for an upgrade will be able to nab the phone for $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB), while "early upgraders" will have to fork over $399 or $499, all with a two year contract and $18 upgrade fee, of course. The telco says a no-commitment version of the phone will be available for $599 and $699, though it looks like that will come after the initial launch. AT&T appears to be leaning pretty heavily towards the all-in unlimited plans, but there are options if you don't want to go that route. We've sorted out the basics after the break, and included AT&T's "iReady" video -- certainly good for a few chuckles.

Continue reading AT&T announces iPhone 3G pricing plans

Further iPhone launch day details unearthed

by Darren Murph posted Jun 15th 2007 @ 2:20PM

Alright, you already knew what day the thing was launching, then you discovered the time, and finally, you realized that you wouldn't even have to get off work early on the left coast thanks to all sales happening in local time zones. For those still obsessing over what will go down just a fortnight from now, BGR has discovered that "all AT&T stores will be closing up at 4:30PM" while employees set up those cutesy iPhone displays, toss back a few Red Bulls, and hopefully receive their shipments from the (potentially armored) trucks. At 6:00PM, either the doors will open back up or the fanatics will force their way in, and the outlets could stay open "as late as midnight" to satisfy the demand. Oh, and make sure you bring some spare change along -- word on the street is that a bevy of typical accessories (chargers, cases, etc.) will be tempting you as you wade through the checkout line.

[Image courtesy of Seattle Post-Intelligencer]