Apple: iPhone 3G activation to take 15 minutes, be prepared to wait in line

A recent interview with Apple’s retail chief, Ron Johnson, has shed some light on Apple’s plans for getting customers in and out of Apple stores with iPhone 3Gs in-hand.

The purchase and activation process is expected to take no longer than 15 minutes, and Johnson is hoping many customers will be able to walk out with a newly activated iPhone 3G in as little as 10 minutes. His goal for every Apple retail store is to churn out 100 customers every hour, and hinted that iPhone 3G stock will be enough to cover demand. “Our goal is to always have enough supply for every customer,” said Johnson.

And, for those of you planning to brave the launch-day lines, Apple plans to let 30 customers in to the store at a time. Once those 30 customers have been handled, Apple will let another 30 in to the store. But, speedy service doesn’t mean rushed service. “We’ll spend as long as it takes with our customers to make sure they’re happy with the phone,” Johnson said. Apple employees will even help customers select the right iPhone 3G calling plan and even setup emails (if requested) before they leave the store.

Apple-quality customer service, incredible logistical prowess, and launch-day hype like none-other - it really doesn’t get any better than this. Chalk it up for another iPhone launch that will likely be the gold-standard of product launches around the world.

[Via: Bloomberg]