Maxis Iphone 5 Launch

A little just a week ago, the Malaysian launch of Iphone 5 happened at Capsquare KL. By the time the weekend was over, there were thousands of people lining up to get the phone. Maybe it was the last minute lucrative offers by Maxis for existing customers that actually got more people interested to get their hands on even a single set of the phone. This of course was the reason I happened to take the advantage of getting one. It's much lighter anyways.

People who had booked their sets and plans ahead before the launch are able to get their hands first. I was informed that there were 45 people who have been lining up like mad since the afternoon all the way until midnight there. But foregoing dinner at the usual time in exchange for donuts and cups of hot beverages surely made the 5 hours waiting time worth it. I thought it was putting my name and coming on Sunday to collect initially, until I came across the barricade.

Not even 9 pm, and the crowd is building all the way to the end!

There's paperwork to be done and that's part 1.

You've got paperwork to attend to and there's Maxis staff crew helping you out in filling the particulars and giving you the SIM card that you hold until you collect your handset. The cool thing is that you can carry your settings that you've backup for your previous phone and just carry over to your new unit once you've got your thing.

If you look at the pic above, you'd see that it's a mad queue at the barricade while some people would bring donuts and tea over.  At least, this helps to put my cold down for a moment, for I was sneezing at times. Plus, there's a recharging station on the other side. But the crowd control still remains mediocre.

One more hour to go!!!!!

There's crew from TV3 and 8TV covering the event, coupled with a few online TV content and radio stations like ERA, HITz.FM and even MyFM covering the event as well. People in the crowd were randomly questioned about waiting time and their feelings towards getting their new iPhone 5. Emceeing the event was NTV7's Will Quah ad 8TV's Julie Woon (Quickie TV). 

Will Quah and Julie Woon

And yes, I was randomly interviewed by her at around 10+ pm. Next thing I never knew that just after midnight, my mum called me asking, "Son, were you on TV?". 

"Am I?"

Then I realized that I was on air for a moment when asked the question on how long I've been waiting.

Seconds to launch!!!

At the stroke of midnight, there's the customary launch pleasantries and there's a queue number that you need to take. Including the first 45 people who have been given the privilege to line up first, I guess that I must be around the first 200 to get the phones. Can you imagine yourself being among the red carpet while you are being filmed by the TV crew when you're attending a gala premiere? Except that you are dressing lavishly like a Hollywood celebrity...lol.

Smile, you're on candid camera!

You got to wait for the number. And when it came to my turn, there's some confusion over the paperwork. Apparently there are some who are not aware of the last minute offer that Maxis throws out their special offer for their existing customers. There's a 10 minute delay for me before grabbing it. They do have an counter where they help to setup the set for you and some accessories where you should get a screen protector before leaving.

And when I was done with the whole thing...you can still see plenty of people lining up there. And there's of course sneaking for some free dinner provided by Modestos for the corporate clientele in an another lounge - more comfy and it's air conditioned there.

The crowd lining up even after I'm done there.