Direct Unfulfillment

[bewareofgeek]

Or...

How I learned to wait in line for 3 hours to NOT get an iPhone 3G.

First place I checked had a short line... because they'd already worked out when they'd run out.

Second place had a longer line, but it was moving.  Cut to 3 hours of gossip and overall discontent.

When the line was down to about 6 people, they announced the sellout, but that they'd be getting another shipment tonight (around midnight) for tomorrow, and additional shipments tomorrow and Sunday nights.  OTOH, I could order the phone and get it in 5-7 days (faster with a fee).

This is called "Direct Fulfillment", BTW, which seems a bit of a misnomer.  Delayed Fulfillment is more accurate, but anyway...

I get in and place the order, with the express shipping.  I'm _hoping_  to get it in 2-3 days, but the sales guys says the offcial schedule is 7-10.

Oh... and the guy at the counter told me that they'd received, for the first day of a GLOBAL rollout, a grand total of....

*drumroll*

TWENTY phones.

*grump*

Comments

[chattycatsmeow.livejournal.com]

All of twenty, eh? Boy they really stocked up.

::eyeroll::

[mdg1.livejournal.com]

Rumor has it that there was a shipping problem in the Northeast.

Anyway, I'm fairly patient. I may get grumpier this time next week, tho. :)

[dewline.livejournal.com]

Considering some of the craziness re: the iPhone up here at the moment, I'm somewhat less than surprised at the lack of stock anywhere else.

[mdg1.livejournal.com]

I just want my own Mother Box/Kimoyo Card :)

(Or at least, the ability to Google from anywhere in the US. :D )

[dewline.livejournal.com]

Understandable given the abilities of either device.