For years now 28-year-old Nadine has been first in line at the Telstra Store in Tamworth to secure the latest iPhone model, but when she arrived at 5.05am yesterday, Ron Pratt had beaten her to the punch.

Age and treachery beat youth and skill every time, or so 58-year-old Ron reckons.

“I was there at 5am. Nadine came in about five minutes after me,” he said yesterday.

“I’m saying this jokingly, but I’ve never been first in anything, so I was going to make sure I was first today.”

He chose the iPhone 6 over the 6 Plus – and said size was the determining factor.

“It fits into my jeans pocket really well,” he said.

“If you’ve got a handbag or a man bag, you could easily accommodate the 6 Plus, but I’m very happy with the iPhone 6.”

Ron previously had an iPhone 4, then switched to another company, but didn’t like it. As he’d given away his phone to his son, he decided to upgrade to the iPhone 5.

“In 12 or 18 months when they bring in the iPhone 7, I’ll be in the queue for that. I find it to be a very reliable, well-supported system and the staff in the Telstra Store are fantastic.”

Nadine was on track for her 5am stakeout outside the Telstra Store until she got a text from a staff member who said nobody was there, so she should go get herself a hot chocolate.

Hot chocolate in hand, she discovered Ron there, but didn’t mind, as he was as big an iPhone fan as she was.

Nadine loves the two-side layout of her new iPhone 6 Plus and said it was “fantastic”.

“It’s a beautiful phone. I love the new technology. It’s faster, the photos are better and while it’s a bigger phone, it’s thinner,” she said.

“I can easily fit it into my pocket, but it might be another story once I get a case on it. 

“The product is made simple, but very intelligently laid out. And having the longer-lasting battery is a bonus.” 

Chris Von Wieldt, 28, from Brisbane, is visiting his partner, Nadine, and was third in line.

“I’ve had iPhones since the fourth generation and I’ve always loved the product,” Chris said.

“They have a quality feel to them, they always introduce 

cutting-edge technology and they’re very artistic in their design.” Being a photographer, he opted for the 6 Plus too and is impressed with the bigger screen, the high-resolution photos and the higher-density pixels.

“These days your phone is so much more than just a phone,” Chris said.

“You carry so much information with you, it’s more like a portable computer.”

Tamworth Telstra Store licensee Hayley Dunst said about 100 of the new models had been snapped up by early afternoon yesterday and she expected to sell close to 140 by day’s end.

“The good thing is we have received another delivery after our initial allotment of 130, so pending any crazy, late-afternoon rush today, we should have some stock available on Saturday,” Hayley said.

“We’re happy to take an order if the phone the customer chooses isn’t in stock, though.”

Telstra Country Wide North West NSW acting area general manager Peter Lamond said all sites had reported excellent first-day sales. 

“This has got to be the biggest launch we’ve seen so far, based on pre-interest and turnout to stores,” Peter said.

“It’s been fantastic.”