The Apple Watch is officially here! Kinda …
Customers are now able to order the smartwatch online, or try one on at select Apple stores.
But there were sparse crowds and short lines at Apple stores in London and Hong Kong, since customers still aren’t able to walk out of the shops with the shiny new watches strapped on their wrists.
Simon Shenton was among the first people lining up in London to try on a new Apple Watch Sport. He said he only waited five minutes to get into the store.
In fact, store staff and members of the media significantly outnumbered customers in the shop.
Shenton said he came by the store on his way to work because he wanted to try on the watch before he placed his online order later today. He’s trying to decide which color strap is best.
The Apple Watch is now on display in stores across the U.S., Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, and the U.K.
The products will begin shipping to customers on April 24.
Apple said Thursday it expects to sell out of its new watches.
“We expect that strong customer demand will exceed our supply at launch,” Angela Ahrendts, Apple’s retail guru, said in a statement.
The Apple Watch is the company’s first new consumer product in five years — and its first since Steve Jobs died.
Apple relies heavily on a single product — the iPhone — for most of its revenue.