An iPhone fan who camped outside Sydney’s flagship Apple store for 11 days to be the first to get his hands on the latest device revealed he has no interest in the new iPhone.
Mazen Kourouche, 20, woke up bleary-eyed on Friday for the release of the iPhone 8, so he could be the first in the world to unbox it for his YouTube followers.
While the 20-year-old university student decided to forego a week’s worth of comforts to live on the street, he admitted to Daily Mail Australia he did not want the phone.
Mazen Kourouche, 20, woke up bleary-eyed on Friday for the release of the iPhone 8, so he could be the first in the world to unbox it for his YouTube followers
‘I’m not going to use this phone, I’m sticking to my 7plus,’ he said.
‘There’s no point keeping something I won’t use, so I’ll probably just give it to my mum.’
Mr Kourouche admitted his mother wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between her current phone and the new $2,000 one.
‘She’s probably going to tell me she doesn’t want a phone like this – she’ll just use it for text messages, not much else,’ he said.
‘She thinks I’m crazy doing this.’
Mr Kourouche grabbed the coveted spot at the front of the queue so he could review the phone for his Youtube followers.
When he set up camp 11 days ago, the software engineering student said he regretted his decision almost immediately.
‘When I got here, I regretted it almost immediately. As soon as I sat down, I realised it was pretty early,’ he told Daily Mail Australia.
Mazen Kourouche camped outside the Apple store in George Street, Sydney, until the iPhone 8 was released on September 22
Rami dandachi, 21, Mazen kourouche, 20 Abdelsalam amailef, 20, were first to get their hands on the new iPhone on Friday
People were lined up around the block to get their hands on the new iPhone on Friday
However he said it was ‘too late to back out now’.
‘I’ve gotten a lot of attention in the media, so if I packed up it would have been more of an embarrassment. So I’m kind of stuck.
‘Now people know I’m here, so if I leave, it will become a headline.’
But when the iPhone was launched on Friday, 11 days after he arrived, Mr Kourouche said he had ‘no regrets’.
‘Right at the beginning I regretted it, but now that I look back, it was all worth it,’ he said.
‘Everyone’s got to do what they love, and that’s what I’m doing.’
The 20-year-old documented his preparations for the 10-day wait in a video on YouTube
First in line customer Mazen Kourouche shows off the new Apple products at the Apple Store in Sydney
‘Unless you’re a celebrity you’ll never feel the way you do when you walk in the store and everyone’s clapping you,’ Mr Behman told Daily Mail Australia
Mr Kourouche said he would be lining up outside the store in November when the iPhone 10 was released – a phone he planned to keep and use himself.
The university student was not the only one to camp outside the Sydney store for a phone they did not want.
Bishoy Behman, 18, said ‘I just do it for the rush’.
‘Unless you’re a celebrity you’ll never feel the way you do when you walk in the store and everyone’s clapping you,’ he told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I didn’t do it for the phone, I don’t give a f*** what phone I have.’
L-R: Mohamed Youssef, 18, Marcus Barsoym, 17, Bishoy behman, 18, Mazen Kourouche, 20 Abdelsalam amailef, 20, Rami Dandachi, 21, were the first six in line for the new iPhone
Customers wait in line for new products at the Apple Store in Sydney, Friday, September 22, 2017
Mr Behman said the new iPhone’s best quality was it’s resell value.
‘The iPhone 8 itself is nothing special, it’s resell value is,’ he said.
‘It’s just the name that brings the fame.’
High-school student Marcus Barsoym, 17, said he spent $4000 on the new product.
‘I spent $2000 for the phone plus $2000 for extras, and I don’t even want it,’ he said.
The latest edition of the iPhone, which costs upwards from $1079, claims to have the most durable glass of any smartphone, wireless charging and up to 256 GB of memory.
Customers wait in line for new products at the Apple Store in Sydney on Friday
New iPhone products at the Apple Store in Sydney, Friday, September 22, 2017
Mr Kourouche, who lined up 11 days ago, said the experience was, but he found it difficult to keep up with his university assignments.
‘I’ve spent a couple full nights here, it only gets hard around 2 or 3am when everyone is coming back from the club drunk.
‘They just mess around with you, I’ve had some people fall on the tent.’
But Mr Kourouche says his friends – Rami, 21, and Abdul, 20 – are rotating shifts with him, so he can still attend university and go home to rest.
‘They take over from me when I need it. I’d gone 25 hours with no sleep because I stayed up to watch the announcement.
The software engineering student is ready to spend more than $3,000 on an iPhone 8 Plus and an iPhone X
Mr Kourouche is excited to be the first person in the world to unbox the iPhone on YouTube
‘I’ve gotten them excited and on launch day, all three of us are going to be in line.’
Nevertheless, he says he will likely return to camp out for the iPhone X ahead of its release.
‘I had been hoping I could hit two birds with one stone and buy the iPhone 8 and X together,’ he said.
‘I will probably camp out for the X, but not for 10 days, definitely not.’
And although this is the third year in a row that he has lined up for an iPhone launch, he doesn’t plan on returning next year.
‘The first time I lined up here, it was for a few hours,’ he said.
‘It was a few hours in 2015, three days in 2016 and now, its 10 in 2017.
‘I don’t think there will be a next time. I think I end on the 10th anniversary with 10 days out here.’
While he admitted he regretted lining up so far in advance, but it was all worth it in the end
The 20-year-old says the biggest challenge was keeping up with university assignments
He is planning to buy an iPhone 8 Plus – a 64GB silver model that will set him back $1,229 – and then buy the iPhone X – a 256GB version in space grey for $1,829.
The two devices will add to his already extensive collection of Apple products, including an iPhone 7 Plus, a MacBook Pro, Apple TV, iPad Pro and Apple Watch.
Although he concedes it was a lot of money to spend on two gadgets, he’s saved up from his part-time job in order to do so.
‘The people that know me know that tech is the only thing I spend money on,’ he said.
Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, introduces the iPhone 8 during a launch event in Cupertino, California, on September 12
A man takes photos of the new iPhone X during the Apple launch event on September 12
‘For people that spend on designer clothing, it gets spent throughout the year. With me, all my money gets saved until September
‘It’s more of an investment for me as well as I use it for my YouTube channel.’
Mr Kourouche also said that while his family supported his mission, they didn’t understand it.
‘They tell me, ‘we can’t believe you’re doing this. You sure you don’t want to come home?’
‘My sister thinks I’m nuts, but she’s supportive too.’
He also added that he’s determined to carry on, despite the negative comments he’s received online.
‘I’ve gotten a lot of comments, 90 per cent of them negative,’ he said.
‘People get creative, I commend them for being bothered.
‘They’ll say things like ‘get a life’ and ‘this guy probably doesn’t have a job.’
‘I mean, how do you think I’m affording it? But it doesn’t bother me.’