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Other Anyone miss the days of standing in line?
- Thread starter Jumpie
- Start date
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Although I never stood in line for an Apple product, I would go out (upwards of 12 hours or so) before stores opened for the release of a new game console, or on Black Friday to get in on the door-buster deals... It was fun... over the years I got to meet some pretty neat people, hear their stories (everyone has a story about why they're camping out in line).
Things felt different back then. There was a camaraderie... a bunch of like-minded nuts who have friends and family who didn't understand why we would do it. Only the others in line did. Politics didn't matter. Social ills didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was getting our hands on that shiny new bauble... excited anticipation of what we would do with our new purchase.
The "good old days" weren't as good as we remember them to be... but they were better than they are now.
Although I never stood in line for an Apple product, I would go out (upwards of 12 hours or so) before stores opened for the release of a new game console, or on Black Friday to get in on the door-buster deals... It was fun... over the years I got to meet some pretty neat people, hear their stories (everyone has a story about why they're camping out in line).
Things felt different back then. There was a camaraderie... a bunch of like-minded nuts who have friends and family who didn't understand why we would do it. Only the others in line did. Politics didn't matter. Social ills didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was getting our hands on that shiny new bauble... excited anticipation of what we would do with our new purchase.
The "good old days" weren't as good as we remember them to be... but they were better than they are now.
Got to agree with this. The anticipation was amazing for the new iPhones. It’s now becoming a bit of a snooze fest and this is coming from a diehard Apple fan.
Nope. Don't miss it for phones or sneakers. I'll taking a 4:55am wake up to pre order and an 8am stroll into the Apple Store over waiting in line any day of the week.
It was fun standing in line over night or morning of in high school but nowadays? Nah I’m good. Ship it to my house please
Not so much for the phones but my friends and I would camp Best Buy for midnight release of Call of Duty games for about 5 years. Some of the most fun nights ever
Smartphones technology moved so quickly at the beginning that it was fun upgrading year to year but now that things are stagnating the yearly upgrades aren't as appealing to the mass people
I use to upgrade almost yearly from Android to Apple back to Android but I just ended up settling with the iPhone XR and now Im moving to the 13 Pro which should be a nice little upgrade for me
I usually don’t stand in line anymore, unless I forget to wake up before 5:00 am on Friday morning and complete my pre-order, which I did forget to do this year. So I’m picking up my new 13 Pro on Friday at my local Apple Store.
I used to love waiting in line. I've met some really good friends that I stay in touch with to this day while waiting in line.
I do. I used to stay overnight at the apple store and it was fun. Made friends and it was a cool experience.
Waited in line for the 4S with then-NFL quarterback Rex Grossman. I couldn’t believe he didn’t pay someone to pick it up for him. He stood out in the Tampa sun with the rest of the commoners.
Lol what?! That’s judgy- what If you simply didn’t pre-order and don’t want to wait a month?
I loved it, although I only did it once. I camped out for the iPhone 6 and had an absolute blast. There were tons of people scalping and cutting in line at the Apple Store, but I had a blast with the people I met in line who were there around me. I still remember the other people in our "friend group" (none of us knew each other but we just sort of bonded during the campout) almost got us all kicked out because they complained to security about people cutting in line, and security thought we were just being whiny lol. Our group consisted of a 60-somethings retired guy who was holding a spot for his friend and himself, a late 20s guy who literally drove by the line and decided to just jump in (even though he didn't have any plans to upgrade, the hype just reeled him in), a couple, a dad and his son, and myself. We all became quite good friends overnight and talked up a storm about Apple everything for like 15 straight hours (I think it was that long).
Anyways, I do miss the good ol' days when the campouts were a big deal and it was like a yearly ritual to see the YouTube videos of the nutcases that would camp out for weeks at the 5th Avenue store. I'd definitely like to camp out again someday, but I don't think the lines are even really a thing anymore. I haven't seen any campout videos on YT for at least 3-4 years so I think the campouts are pretty well gone (except for some small pockets of people I'm sure). It was fun while it lasted and I still have a lot of fun memories and photos from the campout day back in 2014. Anyone who hasn't tried it before is missing out! 😁
Anyways, I do miss the good ol' days when the campouts were a big deal and it was like a yearly ritual to see the YouTube videos of the nutcases that would camp out for weeks at the 5th Avenue store. I'd definitely like to camp out again someday, but I don't think the lines are even really a thing anymore. I haven't seen any campout videos on YT for at least 3-4 years so I think the campouts are pretty well gone (except for some small pockets of people I'm sure). It was fun while it lasted and I still have a lot of fun memories and photos from the campout day back in 2014. Anyone who hasn't tried it before is missing out! 😁
Fun post. I’ve waited in line in the past it was an experience. Fun to chat with people. I’m more of a wait until it’s in stock or order day one guy now. That being said my day one gotta have the latest and greatest fever has worn off. I’m currently sticking with my old devices.
I used to do it every year. It was a lot of fun most of the time. During the iPhone 4 days, I got lucky and mine came a day early in the mail but we still went to line up ~5 hours early on release morning to secure my girlfriend's phone at the time. I had the 4 in the line and the entire line took turns passing it around while we all marveled at the very first Retina display. Now it just shows up in the mail and it's got a few camera improvements.
It was fun. I met and chatted with Woz for three releases and somehow became Facebook friends before he deleted his account.
It was an experience just to hear him speak about his days at Apple. I also got a signed business card of his.
It was an experience just to hear him speak about his days at Apple. I also got a signed business card of his.
in my early 30s my mom and I camped outside of an apple store for the iphone 6 launch. It was cold and boring at times but as morning started to come it was kinda fun and exciting. Everyone in line was nice. And then, as the store opened, Barry Bonds showed up and cut the line! Still got our phones though. Good times. 😂
Yeah, it was a lot of fun. I just did the lineup a few years ago after failing to secure a Xs Max during pre-orders. My favorite lineup experience was when the iPad first came out. That was crazy, my local Apple Store had a guy playing bagpipes, coffee and water provided, lots of cheering when everyone walked out with their device, etc.
