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Launch of Apple iPad 2 in China turns ugly; four are hospitalized

Launch of Apple iPad 2 in China turns ugly; four are hospitalized

Posted: 07 May 2011, 15:14, by Alan F.

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Tags : AT&T -AT&T + Apple -Apple + Tablets -Tablets +

Launch of Apple iPad 2 in China turns ugly; four are hospitalized

With a big crowd lined up outside an Apple Store in China for the launch of the iPad 2, a fight broke out between an employee of the store and scalpers standing outside the location. The glass door of the Beijing Sanlitun Apple Store was shattered and four people were sent to the hospital. It is not known what started the fight.

Those waiting in line to purchase the sequel to Apple's highly successful tablet had to follow new rules Apple had put in place for the launch, including issuing numbered wristbands that iPad 2 buyers had to wear. The store has been closed since the altercation while employees cleamed up the leftover mess. According to Chinese site MacX, the store looked like there had been a riot inside while several customers had blood on their faces. An unconfirmed report from Chinese blog Sinatech quoted a police source as saying that an Apple Store employee had beat up a jobless man who was acting as a scalper.

With a population of 1.2 billion, China is seen as a very important area by Apple. The country currently hosts 4 Apple stores and the company plans on building 25 more over the next few years.

source: Sinatech (translated), MacX (translated) via AppleInsider

Long lines wait outside an Apple Store in China for the Apple iPad 2

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31 Comments

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posted on 07 May 2011, 15:19 3

1. adasdasdas (Posts: 6; Member since: 07 May 2011)

Stupid people, brainless people

posted on 07 May 2011, 15:38 7

3. Lucas777 (Posts: 2137; Member since: 06 Jan 2011)

well, you sure dont see this for anything but an apple product...

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:08 4

7. Whateverman (Posts: 3284; Member since: 17 May 2009)

So what are you saying? I'm not sure if you read the article or not but this doesn't sound like a "Yay, Apple makes great products" kind of story. Four people were sent to the hospital because of scalping... That's not good.

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:19 5

8. Lucas777 (Posts: 2137; Member since: 06 Jan 2011)

did i ever say it was good? All i said is that this would only happen for an apple product...

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:41 1

14. Whateverman (Posts: 3284; Member since: 17 May 2009)

Did you not see where I asked "so what are you saying?" I wanted to be clear on what it was you were implying.

posted on 07 May 2011, 17:14 6

15. Lucas777 (Posts: 2137; Member since: 06 Jan 2011)

okay great? im glad u understood? cause u kinda went off on apple more than ask me whatever u wanted to ask me

posted on 07 May 2011, 17:20 3

17. Asr (unregistered)

So wait, let me get this straight... The original comment was "stupid, brainless people" to which you replied that this happens ONLY for Apple products. Did I misunderstood or did you mean that people who buy Apple are stupid and/or brainless?

posted on 07 May 2011, 17:22 3

18. Lucas777 (Posts: 2137; Member since: 06 Jan 2011)

u misunderstood me. hahaha the people who wud go through a window to get an ipad 2 obviously are, but nowhere did i say that all apple people are.

posted on 07 May 2011, 20:29 3

23. BobbyTaba (Posts: 316; Member since: 11 Aug 2010)

Is there like nothing to do in China? They should be building iPads not waiting in line for them.

posted on 07 May 2011, 15:38 3

2. Sniggly (Posts: 7305; Member since: 05 Dec 2009)

Lol. So where are Taco and Gemini? I want to see them try to give this a positive spin.

posted on 08 May 2011, 11:44 3

33. taco50 (banned) (Posts: 5506; Member since: 08 Oct 2009)

Let me guess you blame Apple?

posted on 08 May 2011, 21:47 2

40. Sniggly (Posts: 7305; Member since: 05 Dec 2009)

Not at all. I blame the stupidity of people who would fight over a tablet.

posted on 07 May 2011, 15:48 1

4. joey18 (Posts: 597; Member since: 20 Jul 2010)

the problem are big line they have only 10 ipads same black friday in best buy i want 5 morning to get my comput ouside in the store asian people saling thos tickets for 100 dollars what scam for best buy

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:03 6

5. renmas (unregistered)

What is wrong with you and why can't you type?

posted on 08 May 2011, 06:16 1

29. biggles (Posts: 223; Member since: 15 Oct 2009)

It's because he's typing it on his iphone.

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:05 3

6. luis_lopez_351 (Posts: 951; Member since: 18 Nov 2010)

LMFAO they are like mosquitoes to an electric light trap

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:21 1

9. Lucas777 (Posts: 2137; Member since: 06 Jan 2011)

And why do we not have cool apple stores like this?

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:26

10. box (unregistered)

that store looks cold and corporate..... why is that in any way appealing?

posted on 08 May 2011, 12:29 1

35. cellgeek82 (Posts: 518; Member since: 20 Dec 2009)

More like futuristic and high-tech :)

posted on 07 May 2011, 16:27 3

11. IOS5 (unregistered)

Kung Fu his ass or something XD

posted on 07 May 2011, 23:54 2

25. Eingild (Posts: 203; Member since: 19 Apr 2011)

Why the hell do you need to fall in line and fight with others just to get a tablet? It's a tablet for goodness sake! Will they die if they weren't able to buy one? I bet if you rip off the apple logo from the back, people won't even care if it's already in the market or not. Stupid people! Killing each other for a tablet.

posted on 08 May 2011, 00:29

26. IOS5 (unregistered)

And who the f?$&! Asked you to buy Apple product adasdasds! Go and buy your butter and cheese this the only thing you known about it cheese boy lol.

posted on 08 May 2011, 01:05

27. weirdfisher (Posts: 51; Member since: 31 Mar 2011)

I live in hong kong.
We dont like the 'mainland chinese people' because what they do are like locusts.
Ironically today's 'high end techs' are made by these people

posted on 08 May 2011, 05:52 1

28. Spadow (unregistered)

androids stop hating on this article.
your just jealous chinese people dont go crazy over your fully customisable brillant androids.
because everybody knows an apple a day keeps droids away.

posted on 08 May 2011, 10:35 1

30. momo2 (unregistered)

What ever happened to ordering online?

posted on 08 May 2011, 10:49

31. taco50 (banned) (Posts: 5506; Member since: 08 Oct 2009)

From what I've gathered there was a lot of scalpers trying to buy up the iPads and resell them. The Apple store was trying to prevent scalping and that's where the confrontation happened.

posted on 08 May 2011, 10:59 1

32. Sniggly (Posts: 7305; Member since: 05 Dec 2009)

Yeah, that's what I gathered from this article. Sucks that the scalpers were doing that, but it wasn't the job of the Apple employees to do anything about it.

posted on 08 May 2011, 19:50

36. iwebdroidberry7 (Posts: 230; Member since: 17 Jan 2011)

Yes Sniggly, we get it, Apple is evil. GTF *rolls eyes*

posted on 08 May 2011, 22:00

41. Sniggly (Posts: 7305; Member since: 05 Dec 2009)

I didn't blame Apple. I blame the store employees who got into the altercation. Apple would probably agree with me that their actions did the opposite of helping the situation.