iPhone 4 launch draws hordes of Apple fans

The excitement among iPhone fans hasn’t died down, judging from the crowd at the iPhone 4 store launch in downtown San Francisco.

The line in front of the Apple store extended for three long city blocks — that’s more people than we recall seeing at the iPad launch in April, as well as at past iPhone launches. There weren’t any big hangups with the phone activation, as happened with the 3G two years ago, but the lines still moved pretty slowly.

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While the iPhone buyers were out in force, there seemed to be fewer app developers. In the past, these events had a more circus-like feel, with representatives from mobile startups walking up-and-down the line hawking their wares, and I’d have to jostle for space with other journalists and TV cameras. Today, the only person I saw pitching something was offering to buy old iPhones. There seemed to be a smaller media presence, too.

One familiar sight was SF AppStudio cofounder Dale Larson (pictured), who has been at the front of the iPhone line for the past three years. I’d heard that Larson would miss out this time because he was on his honeymoon, but his friends camped out and saved the front of the unreserved line for him. (There was a separate line for people who reserved phones.) Larson returned from his honeymoon this morning and said he took a limo directly from the airport to the Apple Store: “I had lunch in Belize yesterday.”

Larson also said that this was the easiest phone activation yet, although there’s still room for AT&T to speed up the process.

Not everyone shared his enthusiasm. I heard someone else in line declare, “I’ve been here for 24 hours. I hate my life right now.” (It didn’t sound as bitter as it looks.) Meanwhile, two of the policemen on-site to ensure that everything proceeded smoothly talked about why neither of them owns an iPhone — they’re both Verizon customers.

[photo: JP Manninen]