A lot of people find themselves questioning how this is possible, considering that Apple was swamped with a pre-order overload. In fact, it was only one hour after the iPhone 5 went on sale (at 12:01 AM PST on September 14th) that the company had to halt orders. They soon after told waiting customers that they would need to push back the physical release of the device to at least September 28th. The retail store release does not begin until Friday, September 21st, leaving many consumers to question how these phones fell into the hands of the general public.
Analysts speculate that the “sudden posting” of unboxing videos is probably due to the fact that some users mistakenly received their pre-order shipments without Apple’s consent. Representatives from the company have previously stated that all Apple pre-orders are placed on delivery trucks and put on a “hold system,” meaning that the delivery companies are not supposed to physically deliver the items until the day of Apple’s choosing. Unfortunately though, these shipments sometimes get “lost in the shuffle” and end up being delivered to consumers doorsteps on accident. The bad news is that you’re probably not one of the lucky few that had this “positive mistake” happen to them, but the good news is your fellow consumers were nice enough to post some unboxing videos to keep you entertained while you wait.
The first video is from the UK technology site T3.com, who actually had their device sent directly to them from Apple for review purposes. They received the handset yesterday (once the shipment embargo lifted) and were able to produce a quick (and incredibly professional looking) unboxing video. The presentation contains no commentary but instead shows a pair of steady hands carefully unboxing each item from the packaging, making sure to give consumers as a variety of different angles on the device. You’ll also get a chance to see the Ear Pods, in their travel packaging, as well as the new Lightning Connector.
The second clip is from the popular German consumer mobile company, Vodafone. The video was uploaded to Youtube for a short time via the companies personal Youtube account, but was later removed. However it appears to be back up and running and has been reposted on the companies official account. Careful with this one though, because unless you speak fluent Deutsch then you’re probably not going to be understanding much of the commentary.
The last video discovered was uploaded by a Youtube individual, however it seems to have its permissions set to private and is not available for public viewing anymore.