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Gadget lovers around the world on Friday crammed into stores to buy the latest super-fast iPhone G3, swooning over its Internet, GPS and iPod features, despite occasional sticker shock.

In New York, customers jostled outside the company's Fifth Avenue store as Apple employees cheered them on when sales kicked off at 8:00 am, one of the last places to join the global rollout.

First out of the shop with his prize in his hand was David Yoo, 24, of New York. "I am very happy, I am going to call my mother" he told reporters, adding that he loved the phone's applications.

Yoo, who arrived at midnight and bought the 16G phone for 299 US dollars, said he bought it because it is "faster with the Internet, and for the GPS."

Jason Rappaport, a 27-year-old New Yorker, arrived at 5:00 am and was out at 8:45 with his new phone.

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"Most important for me is the faster Internet because in the old model it was much slower," he said.

Britons crowding around Apple's flagship store in London took delays caused by a technical glitch in the shop in their stride, saying the wait was worth it for the new must-have gadget.

Chris Moorby, 26, said: "I'm leaving now because I've got to go to work but I'd otherwise wait all day. I've got a lot of patience for Apple."

Another customer, Antonio Guerra, 19, was prepared to be patient, saying: "I'm good, I've been here for 19 hours, I don't mind waiting a few more."

Apple was not immediately contactable for comment on the delays but mobile phone network provider 02, its partner in Britain for the handset, said demand for the iPhone 3G had been "absolutely phenomenal."

Staff at the store said the glitch had apparently been caused by the volume of people overloading the system.

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Apple fans across Asia queued for hours to get their hands on the new iPhone, looking to be the first to own a gadget the company hopes will be as big a worldwide smash as the iPod.

More than 1,000 people, many waiting through the night, besieged a store in downtown Tokyo as the iPhone went on sale for the first time in Japan, where having the latest gizmo is almost a national obsession.

Some Japanese began camping out days before the launch for the thrill of being the first to buy the new smartphone -- described as twice as fast and half as expensive as the original iPhone, which was never sold in Japan.

Apple rolled out the much hyped iPhone 3G in cities around the world on Friday, but New Zealanders got the first chance to buy it when stores opened just after midnight.

Shoppers braved the cold winter weather to queue in the main cities of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, waiting for three stores to open especially for the occasion.

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Many potential customers expressed outrage over the cost though, with the cheapest price, 199 New Zealand dollars (150 US), tied there to a two-year calling contract costing 250 dollars a month.

Pricing is expected to be key to the success of the iPhone 3G, which boasts faster Internet access and file transfer than the first version and also has a built-in iPod.

In Australia, a few hundred people spent a chilly evening outside a Sydney store which got a jump on its competitors by opening at midnight.

First through the doors was business analyst Brett Howell, who said he had been surprised to find himself at the head of the queue when he turned up about 11 hours earlier.

"I was shocked that no one had lined up," he told reporters. "I'm not a super geek, but apparently I am. I'm Australia's super geek."

© 2008 AFP