I paid someone $100 to stand in line for me, and then I published a book.

The two iPhones I purchased on June 29, 2007

Ten years ago today on June 29, 2007, the original iPhone went on sale at 6pm. I was there.

I was in line at the Apple Store in Salt Lake City, Utah. Earlier in the week I posted an ad on craigslist asking if anyone would be willing to wait in line for me. I found someone, paid him $100 to start around 8am, showed up around 4pm to take my place in line, and walked out with two iPhones in hand — one for myself and another as a giveaway for a book I was writing about mobile web design.

I was desperate to get my hands on one. I suspected all stores across the U.S. would sell out on day one and iPhone would become only more difficult to secure. Desperation led to capitalism. Why not pay someone to stand in line for me?

It worked. I showed up a couple hours before the doors opened. Thankfully the person I paid held his end of the arrangement. I took my place in line, and a couple hours later I was ushered into the store as Apple Store employees stood clapping and shouting words of encouragement.

Before I made it out of the store I was interviewed by Utah’s local Fox News affiliate. I remember barely discerning the reporter’s questions. The atmosphere inside the store was so electric and chaotic I could hardly hear anything she was saying.

Later that evening I published a blog post with my initial impressions:

Very impressed. The keyboard is a bit of a struggle at first, the browser works quite well, and the maps app is fantastic.

I was desperate to get my hands on an iPhone not because of the hype but because I had been writing a book on mobile web design for nearly a year prior. By June 2007 the book was ready to be published, but I couldn’t justify its publication without mentioning iPhone. So I loaded up a few websites in Mobile Safari, snapped a few pics, and the rest is history. The book was self-published in August 2007 and sold about 7,000 copies in its first few months.

Website for Mobile Web Design, self-published in 2007

As for the second iPhone I purchased? It was a giveaway for the book. Sam Brown was the lucky winner.

Numerous models later, it’s hard to believe it’s already been 10 years. Happy birthday, iPhone.