Buyers line up to buy iPads in Asia, Europe
By Danica Kirka |
May 29, 2010, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
TECHNOPHILES mobbed Apple Stores in Asia and Europe yesterday in a quest to snatch up the hottest gadget of the moment -- the iPad.
Long lines snaked down streets in London, Paris, Frankfurt and Tokyo as eager buyers vied to wield their credit cards. Screams and cheers rose from the crowd in central London as students, professionals and self-proclaimed computer geeks clutched boxes containing the slim black device.
"If I was a music fan, it would be like the launch of a Lady GaGa album in the US," said comedian Stephen Fry, known in Britain as a champion Tweeter.
Apple Inc, based in Cupertino, California, said earlier this month that it had sold 1 million of the devices in the United States in 28 days. The company started taking orders for the iPad abroad on May 10 after pushing back its international delivery target amid extreme demand at home.
The computer looks like a larger version of Apple's iPhone and can be used to send e-mails, draw pictures and play games. It is also seen as a potential savior of the struggling newspaper industry, because it can be used as an electronic reader.
In Britain, prices for the iPad range from 429 pounds to 699 pounds (US$624 to US$1,017).
But the rollout has not been without its problems. A string of suicides at a Chinese factory that churns out iPads and other high-tech items has raised concerns about working conditions for workers who face tremendous time pressures.
In response, Apple issued a statement expressing commitment to ensuring that conditions "throughout our supply chain are safe and workers are treated with respect and dignity."
The bad publicity did not hurt launches in Europe and Asia. Besides Britain, the device was unveiled yesterday in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain and Switzerland.
At the Apple Store in Frankfurt hundreds lined up. Some said they'd arrived early not because they wanted to own it first -- but simply to get an iPad at all.
Long lines snaked down streets in London, Paris, Frankfurt and Tokyo as eager buyers vied to wield their credit cards. Screams and cheers rose from the crowd in central London as students, professionals and self-proclaimed computer geeks clutched boxes containing the slim black device.
"If I was a music fan, it would be like the launch of a Lady GaGa album in the US," said comedian Stephen Fry, known in Britain as a champion Tweeter.
Apple Inc, based in Cupertino, California, said earlier this month that it had sold 1 million of the devices in the United States in 28 days. The company started taking orders for the iPad abroad on May 10 after pushing back its international delivery target amid extreme demand at home.
The computer looks like a larger version of Apple's iPhone and can be used to send e-mails, draw pictures and play games. It is also seen as a potential savior of the struggling newspaper industry, because it can be used as an electronic reader.
In Britain, prices for the iPad range from 429 pounds to 699 pounds (US$624 to US$1,017).
But the rollout has not been without its problems. A string of suicides at a Chinese factory that churns out iPads and other high-tech items has raised concerns about working conditions for workers who face tremendous time pressures.
In response, Apple issued a statement expressing commitment to ensuring that conditions "throughout our supply chain are safe and workers are treated with respect and dignity."
The bad publicity did not hurt launches in Europe and Asia. Besides Britain, the device was unveiled yesterday in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain and Switzerland.
At the Apple Store in Frankfurt hundreds lined up. Some said they'd arrived early not because they wanted to own it first -- but simply to get an iPad at all.
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