New Zealand student buys first new iPhone

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - First sales of Apple's new iPhone kicked off in New Zealand on Friday, with buyers, some of whom had camped in line for days, crowded outlets to buy the latest high-tech gadget to hit store shelves.

The new iPhone -- a music and video player, cellphone and Web terminal in one -- is an updated version of the original that sold to 270,000 people within days of its June 2007 launch.

After launching in New Zealand, sales of the new iPhone will roll out to more than 20 countries across the globe.

Several hundred people waited outside Vodafone shops in New Zealand's three main cities, supplied with music, food and entertainment, before a spirited countdown saw the first person in the world politely ushered through the door to the counter.

"I'm going to put this on charge, have a play around with it and have a nice long sleep," said 22-year-old Auckland student Jonny Gladwell, who queued in freezing temperatures for around 60 hours to be the first to buy it, at a minute past midnight.

A Vodafone New Zealand spokeswoman said more than 400 phones were sold in early morning trade. Analysts expect the new iPhone to draw as many as 10.5 million buyers worldwide this year and -- with 6 million of the older devices already in use -- help Apple beat its target to sell 10 million iPhones by the end of 2008.

The next-generation iPhone is the first taste for Asian consumers of the multimedia device, with earlier models only available in the Unites States and Europe.

The hotly awaited gadget has faster Web links than the first iPhone, supports third-party software like games and instant messaging and is heavily subsidised by a coterie of phone carriers, some of which are giving it away to lure new users.

Queues formed in the pre-designated Asian markets as early as Wednesday. In London and Hong Kong, carriers were swamped by tens of thousands of online applications.