China Unicom Grabs 100,000 iPhone 5 Pre-Orders On Day 1

Last week, Apple made it official that the iPhone 5 will be launched in China on December 14th. Today, country’s 2nd largest wireless carrier China Unicom, began taking reservations for the device, receiving 100,000 online pre-orders, reports The Next Web (via Sina Tech).

Iphone 5 black back

The carrier did not charge money for the pre-orders, instead requiring an identity card and other personal information to reserve orders for the first day. On the other hand, China Telecom, Apple’s carrier partner for iPhone 4S in the region, received only 5,000 pre-orders for the iPhone 5 on Sunday. Reports have suggested that some China Telecom branches have been taking iPhone 5 pre-orders for weeks now.

The last few iPhone releases in China have been marred with difficulties due to an elaborate network of scalpers. The implementation of a reserve and pick-up system helped keep things calm during the release of the iPad 3 earlier this year, and Chinese Apple Stores will presumably keep the same system in place for upcoming launches.

Currently, there are seven official retail stores in mainland China, in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, though the company is planning to build many more.

Apple’s iPhone 5 rollout has been its most aggressive ever, with plans to launch the device in 100 countries by the end of this year.

P.S. - Like our news? Support the site with a coffee/beer. Or shop with our Amazon link. We use affiliate links when possible--thank you for supporting independent media.