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Journalists Cover Microsoft, Using Macs

It’s not an easy time for Microsoft — with Steve Ballmer having to field questions about being “buffoons” and an “evil empire”  at the shareholder’s meeting (.doc) — so when they get together “the world’s most influential technology pundits and online writers” (nb: we weren’t invited) for Mobius to discuss super-secret mobile tech you’d think [...]

Guide To Black Friday Apple Bargains: Cheap MacBooks, iPods and Accessories Galore

Here’s a guide for finding the best bargains on Apple-related gear during the infamous Black Friday sales on November 27. We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of gear from leaked photos of sales flyers and descriptions of sales.
The bargains include a 2.26 GHz MacBook + $150 gift card at Best Buy for $999.99 ; a 32GB [...]

Review: Voices Is Today’s Best Thing Ever, Grab It Now While It’s Cheap

New on the App Store is Voices from the clever folk at Tap Tap Tap. You can guess what it does.

Open it up, pick a silly voice. Helium is pretty silly. A microphone appears and the app even clears your throat for you (try it, you’ll see what I mean). Now speak your brains, and [...]

Review: Sony Walkman S540 Series Video MP3 Player

Press releases, you will hardly be surprised to hear, are rarely very interesting. But one arrived in my inbox a couple of weeks ago that made me double-take.
“Sony’s S Series Walkman,” it chattered, “is a serious challenger to the iPod Nano.” Gosh, really? Perhaps the Cult had better have a look at one, then, despite [...]

iPhone 3G in Russia: Just Say “Nyet” to Long Lines


The iPhone 3g arrived in Russian stores Friday. They cost a pretty ruble — 23,000 and 27,000 or about $900 and $1,000 for the eight and 16 gigabyte versions — causing some early adopters to spend as much as they make in a month on the gotta-have-it handset.

Retailers weren’t expecting long lines, though. Apple resellers are using a don’t call us, we’ll call you approach, asking potential buyers to leave contact details.

“We already have more than fifty people on our list, so it is better to leave your number and we will call you when your phone is ready for pick up,” he said. Most dealers, such as Evroset and Svyaznoy are also accepting advance orders.

This is a good thing, since temperatures in Russia are already brisk and wet.

Videos show a few very subdued customers waiting in bank-like settings for their new phones.

Although the arrival of the 3G version was sufficiently hyped (as per the “iSoon” billboard above) retailers don’t expect a stampede because uber-early adopters have already bought them on the gray market…

Sales expectations for the former U.S.S.R. are 3.5 million handsets by the end of 2009.

Via Moscow News

About the author

nicole_martinelli

Nicole Martinelli was born in San Francisco and has lived in Milan and Florence, Italy. Cultish tendencies and love for DIY increased while living on the Old Continent, where tech came late and cost more in Big Mac index terms. She's written for Wired.com, The New York Times and Newsweek, and since 1999 on her site, Zoomata. If you're so inclined, friend her on Facebook or connect on Linked in.

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3 comments

    “gotta-have-it handset” – Last thing it is. Have you seen the specs for the new Nokia 5800? Makes the iPhone look really overpriced.

    [...] [Cult of Mac] SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “iPhone 3G in Russia”, url: “http://www.macabulary.com/iphone-3g-in-russia/” }); Filed Under (iPhone) by Benjamin Read more [...]

    Condoms iCondom – cost $399

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