While it may not have invited the same type of throng as its sister store on Michigan Avenue, the Apple store on North and Halsted was the temporary home for a mass of excited iPad 2 fans waiting for the 5 p.m. ball to drop last Friday.
“I had the first iPad, and it really changed the way I use a computer,” said Jayson Schultz, 27, who arrived to stand in line at 2:30 p.m. “I use it more than my laptop or my phone now, and I just couldn’t wait a week to order the new one.”
When questioned why one would spend an entire Friday afternoon standing in line, most of these iPad fans had the same answer: they just couldn’t wait.
“Are you kidding?” asked Valerie Speciale, 44, incredulity writ large on her face. “Why would you want to wait? Instant gratification. That’s what Americans love.”
“I made her come along,” said Jeff Lawrence, 25, pointing to his girlfriend, Kat LaCost, 22. “I was here for the store opening, and this is what Apple is great at—the authentic experience.”
“It was saying there would be a three- to seven-week wait if you ordered it online,” said University of Illinois Chicago student David Seitz, 21. “I wanted it on the first day, and I don’t feel like being 300 people back in line, so I got here at 10 a.m.”
Even at 10 a.m., Seitz was still a good fifteen people back.
Many gave similar reasons for their excitement over the iPad2, citing the faster processing speed and the addition of a video camera.
“We all know it should have been on the first one,” LaCost said. “We know they had the technology to do it. [Apple] will always get you for all your worth. And you know what? We fell for it.”
“What I like about Apple, though, is that they put out products that by far outdo everything else,” said Speciale. “Sure, they care about the bottom line, but it seems like they have a philosophy.”
“Oh, I don’t even care,” said Seitz about the issue of the cameras being intentionally left off the first iPad. “I totally knew it, and I couldn’t care less.”
“I don’t even actually like their products that much,” said Paula Hirsch, 41. “But I’m biting the bullet here. Also, part of it is the experience, right? It’s out, and I want it now—what more reason do you need? I did tell my son, if I buy a Macbook next, I might need an intervention.”
Chris Foresman, 38, is a writer for the tech site Arstechnica.com, and because Apple limited reviews of the iPad2 to a small number of publications and Web sites, he had to brave the crowd to get his hands on a model for his review.
“It’s for my job, but honestly, I’d be fine with the first one,” said Foresman, which made him by far the calmest person interviewed in line. “But anybody who has an iPad? Yeah, they’ll want an iPad2.”
Finally, RedEye made it up to Terrell Johnson, who had the distinction of being the first person in line for an iPad2 at the North and Halsted location.
“I got here at 8 a.m., and there was no line, nobody waiting, so I was about to go home,” said Johnson, 31.
“He called me,” said his friend Meredith Davis, 34, “and said, ‘Hey, there’s no one in line.’ And I was like, ‘Well, start the damn line!’”
Added Johnson: “Plus, I really wanted a white one. Trust me, everyone here wants a white one.”