Gadget fans in frenzy as iPhone debuts

THOUSANDS of gadget fans, or their paid stand-ins, lined up yesterday to be among the first buyers of Apple’s iPhone, a music and video playing phone that seeks to reshape the mobile industry.

Just after dawn, nearly 200 people were waiting outside Apple’s Fifth Avenue store in New York City for the device, which was not to go on sale for another 12 hours. The iPhone has whipped technology lovers into a frenzy usually reserved for rock stars.

“It’s a gift for my wife,” said Eric Brandon, 42. “It’s a little expensive, but it’s worth it because there is no other phone that’s like it.”