UPDATED: Added Nokia & BlackBerry into Malaysian launch dates comparison.
Everyone wants to get their hands on their latest models right after it is being announced. With strong demand, manufacturers would want to get their devices into market before the competition comes out with a better model. So how long have we waited for the latest smart phone in Malaysia? We have compared global announcement and local availability dates of various iPhone and Android smart phone models to give an illustrations on our wait times.
Historically Apple has been reducing the roll out waiting time for Malaysia with the exception for iPhone 3GS which took a rather short 53 days. After that, the iPhone 4 took slightly more than 100 days which is then shorten to 72 days for the 4S.
For those still waiting for the illusive availability of the iPhone 5, so far we have waited about 59 days to-date. If Apple wants to beat the iPhone 4S in terms of waiting time, they have 13 more days to go which can be indicated if the telcos start their Registration of Interest by next week.
Apple isn’t the only one doing this as the other smart phone contenders too have been busy shortening its roll out wait times. As seen above, the Galaxy S II had taken more than 4 months for it to reach Malaysia but has shorten it to as little as 27 days for the Malaysian launch of the Galaxy S III. Other players too have strive to bring down the wait time under 2 months. The fastest roll out we’ve seen for Malaysia is the Motorola RAZR which took just 3 weeks to reach our shores.
Nokia and RIM in the other hand have taken more than 100 days to make their current models available after its initial announcement. Hopefully they can do better with their upcoming line up.
Overall we have been getting our latest gadgets quicker than before. Now it all depends on manufacturers if they can supply as quickly as possible while demand is still strong. Otherwise, it is their own loss if consumers are spending their money with something newer in the market.
