With the release date of Apple Inc’s iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus still unconfirmed in China, buyers from the world’s largest smartphone market have been finding other means of procuring the much anticipated devices. It’s reported that Chinese resellers snatched up pre-order iPhones within hours on Apple’s Hong Kong website, hoping to sell the phones in China for as much as four times the retail price.
According to reports by Twitter users, buyers from China have also made their way to Japan with the goal of smuggling the iPhones back into China for resale. At the Ginza Apple Store, it’s estimated that as much as 90 percent of the more than 400 people waiting in line to buy an iPhone 6 are Chinese.
Here’s what the line in front of the Ginza Apple Store looked like at 7pm local time. Twitter user @xxxprius estimates that over 400 people are waiting for the iPhone 6:
現在Appleストア銀座には400人以上の行列が伸びています。
既に1丁目の陸橋を越し現在も続々と中国人が集結中です。
ホームレスの方々は警備員に囲まれ直立不動で待機中(爆 pic.twitter.com/JSPDYEJ6dW— iGNITED (@i_ignited) September 18, 2014
現在ホームレスの方々は直立不動で警備員に囲まれております。
ホームレスの方以外は状況変わらず和気あいあいです。 pic.twitter.com/CkxlDHEZ61— iGNITED (@i_ignited) September 18, 2014
At 9:00pm local time, Twitter user @taosama wrote that a local news station measured the line to be 510 meters (1,673 feet) long; that’s well over a quarter of a mile!
Another tweeter @app_taylor confirms an unusual amount of Chinese buyers, identified by their ability to speak Chinese.
AppleStore銀座行列、陸橋下の様子。
中国人だらけ。 pic.twitter.com/IaYUWkK8W1
— なべろぐYouTuber (@nabe_taylor) September 18, 2014
Of course, these are not official reports, just observations by Twitter users, but the length of the line, clearly visible in the photos, and alleged large amount of Chinese patrons waiting to purchase the iPhone 6 is impressive.
The iPhone 6 is getting closer to becoming available in China, as Reuters reported Thursday Apple has one of the two required licenses to begin sales, but for now it seems Chinese consumers will have to pay a premium price if they want to be one of the first in the country to have Apple’s latest gadget.
Source: Hachima Kikou, Itai News
Featured image: Twitter (xxxprius)