IAmidst much fanfare, Bharti Airtel today launched the much awaited Apple iPhone in the city. As the clock struck 12 am, top officials of Bharti Airtel formally launched the phone at their Nungambakkam showroom by bursting crackers.

Airtel officials and people waiting to have a glimpse of the latest gadget made the occasion like celebrating the dawn of a new year.



When noted play back singer S P Balasubramanian opened the Airtel showroom amidst huge applause, curious onlookers and some motorists, even at midnight invaded the showroom to have a glimpse of the phone.

Crown Prince of Arcot Nawabzada Mohammed Asif Ali was the first customer to buy the phone.

Actor Prasanna who launched the phone, said that he already a great fan of Apple. "I have an 80GB Apple iPod and this is always my favourite" he said.

Instrumentalist Rajesh Vaidhya who owns an apple computer in his studio said "I had planned to buy three iPhones but the price is much higher than what I thought and I would go with two iPhones".

Bharti Airtel Tamil Nadu region (Mobile services) CEO Rajiv Rajagopal said that the phones are being rolled out in 84 stores across the state and 400 outlets across the country.

Declining to comment on the number of bookings they have received in this part of the region, Rajagopal said that the response was 'overwhelming' when they advertised about the phone on their website a week back.

Apart from its rich features, the phone has a faster internet connectivity and a GPS (Global Positioning System) facility. It is priced at Rs 31,000(for 8GB storage capacity) and Rs 36,000 (16GB), Rajagopal said.