The Wait Is Over: New iPhones Go On Sale
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The excitement had been building for months, but on Friday new iPhone models finally hit store shelves.
Tech lovers pulled all-nighters outside Apple stores across the globe. Some people began lining up at the Apple store on Fifth Avenue weeks ago.
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"I camped out here for 14 days, slept out here for 14 nights," one man told CBS 2's Amy Dardashtian.
For those who didn't want to stand in line, the website TaskRabbit let you hire someone for about $14 to wait for you. Last year, more than 300 people hired stand-ins to get the iPhone 5.
By Friday morning, hundreds of people were outside waiting for doors to open at 8 a.m.
So what's behind the Apple obsession?
Psychologist Harris Straytner said it's a sophisticated psychology-based marketing strategy that people buy into.
"People don't want to be left out," Straytner said. "The stores make you feel like a family member. It's a fascinating thing and it's very youth-oriented, so you feel young at heart."
The strategy seems to be working.
"Part of the reason I came down here was to be part of the line and the community," said Apple customer Kyle Stoneman, who spent nearly $1,000 on the new device and admitted the he may have a problem. "I feel like I'm obsessed a little bit, but I'm aware of my obsession. I'm thoroughly steeped in that world."
"It was unbelievable how many people were there just rooting you on," another customer said.
Apple's latest iPhone models come in two versions.
The Wait Is Over: New iPhones Go On Sale
The high-end 5S boasts a faster processor, improved camera and new fingerprint sensors to unlock the device. It comes in silver, "space gray" and gold -- which is already in short supply and sold out in some stores.
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The cheaper 5C, which starts at $99 and is available in multiple bright colors, is marketed to compete with the Androids on the market.
Apple also released the new iOS 7 software, which can be downloaded and installed on the iPhone 4 and later models, as well as on the tablets beginning with the iPad 2.
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