OK, maybe I am obsessed…

[fbhjr]

I am interested in getting a new iPhone. My existing one is a couple of
years old, my contract is up for a discount new one and I cracked it
dropping it out of a giant robot freezer in The Hague two weeks ago.

I know there is a lot of hype about this new iPhone. And I’ve probably
picked up more of it than I should have. But, if I’m going to get a new
phone and want to keep the several years of apps I’ve already paid for, a
new iPhone is the best choice.
And, if I’m going to get a new one, I want to get the good one.
(I don’t really care about that fingerprint thing the hype talks about.
I’m more interested in the 64bit processor.)

I knew they’d be hard to get and figured if I got one by my birthday (just
over a month away) I’d still be doing fine.

But then they updated their website to allow you to track which stores have
them in stock within 200 miles (320km) of you.

Now it has become more of a game of “Where’s Waldo” for me. I plug random
zip codes from around the country into the search engine and find out where
in the country these phones are located.

And, they aren’t.
They aren’t out there.

From Maine to New Jersey? Zero.
Chicago and the northern Midwest? Zero.
Texas? Zero.
Atlanta? Zero.
Oregon? Zero.
North Dakota? One. Yes. North Dakota has one.
California? One. Somewhere in south LA.

So, as far as I can tell, there are only two of them in the whole country.

That is somewhat unfair as I have seen others pop up over the last week
since they put this tool online. At one point last week there were at
least ten in the northeast of the country.
I did not drive off to check on this in person, so I can’t really verify
the information.

And, all the folks who ordered on online and have it shipped to them don’t
show up on this. It is only extra stock in stores. I assume most people
who want one order them on line and have it shipped to them.

But, it still strikes me as very strange to have so few of them in stock.
I’m not sure if it is bad planning on their part, or great marketing.
Two years ago when my wife and I got our current phones, we showed up the
day after they went on sale and 30 minutes later had our phones. No big
deal.
http://www.fbhjr.livejournal.com/496741.html

It seems to me like if they wanted to sell more, they should have some to
sell.
But, I’m told sometimes I don’t understand how these things work because
I’m an engineer and think about them wrong.

But, it is fun for me to plug in different zip codes and see what I get.
Someday I may even buy a phone…