Crowds snap up new iPhones in UAE

Apple's long-expected new smartphones iPhone 7 and 7 Plus hit the United Arab Emirates' (UAE) market on early Saturday, causing a sensation among customers.

In Dubai, the new devices were sold out shortly after the sale began.

Apple sold "100 percent of our stock" within minutes at its official stores in the UAE, an Apple salesperson told Xinhua.

He did not reveal the exact sales number on the release day in the country.

Hüseyin Celik, an entrepreneur from Turkey, said his family started queuing from four o'clock in the morning and bought five devices.

However, his son Omar was a bit disappointed because he did not get the iPhone 7 Plus, "which is quicker when using the App Store."

Mohammed, an Emirati businessman, also expressed his frustration at failing to buy a new iPhone.

"I pre-ordered seven devices, but just because I came after 8 am, I have to wait until tomorrow," he said.

Some customers started queuing as early as 10 pm the day before and many of them even slept in front of the Apple stores, security officials said.

In the Gulf Arab state of 10.5 million people, residents own an average of more than two mobile phones, according to the UAE's Telecommunications Regulatory Authority in Abu Dhabi. Endit