Japan's iPad 2 Launch: Queues & Happy Customers
by Joe White
April 29, 2011
Yesterday's iPad 2 launch in Japan was a success, attracting long queues and leaving many Apple fans happy, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
The device's launch was previously delayed in Japan. However, the second generation iPad eventually launched in the country yesterday - and unsurprisingly, the device attracted queues in Tokyo.
At Tokyo's Ginza Apple Store, the first customer to queue arrived at 8 p.m. on Wednesday evening. Soon, the queue spanned three blocks.
In Hong Kong, a queue of 400 assembled outside one Apple Store. As reported by the Associated Foreign Press:
If you live in Japan, let us know if you managed to get an iPad 2 in the comments.
[via AppleInsider]
A long queue snaked around the Apple shop in a major downtown shopping centre with several groups of shoppers loading as many as a dozen iPads onto trolleys.However, this year's hype did not match that of the original iPad, which there was a "frenzy" for in Japan last year. Apple's second generation iPad retails at 44,800 yen (around $549 dollars) in Japan. And, despite the presence of Apple rivals - such as Sony - in the country, the iPad's sleek design excites many. As reported by The Wall Street Journal:
“It’s all in the design,” said Tomonori Hamajima, who woke up at 5 a.m. to make the two-hour commute into central Tokyo to buy the new iPad. Mr. Hamajima said the original iPad sold out before he was able to buy one, so he decided to wait to get the newer version. The flood of tablets released in the interim by electronics rivals didn’t register on his radar. Sony Corp. unveiled its pair of tablets to be released later this year just two days earlier. But Mr. Hamajima said he has no interest.
