Mobile phone retailers sold only about one-third of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 plus

Mobile phone retailers sold only about one-third of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 plus supplied to them for the launch in India on Friday in one of the dullest first-day sales for Apple’s flagship product in recent years.

The debut of the iPhone 8 in the country was a stark contrast to previous launches, when demand would outstrip supply and leave retailers out of stock within an hour.

The familiar long queues usually seen outside Apple exclusive stores and large retail chains in India during an iPhone launch were missing in most of the stores on Friday evening. Even a tweet by indiaistore.com, the official platform of iPhone distributors in India, showed only a handful of people outside an Apple store to buy the new iPhones.

Apple started selling the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus in India at 6 pm on Friday a week after the global launch starting at Rs 64,000. The iPhone X, marking the 10th anniversary of the iconic device, will be launched in India on November 3 and will sell for Rs 89,000 (64 GB model) and Rs 1.02 lakh (256 GB).