iphone 4 side shot
Bloomberg reports on an article from Russian business newspaper RBC Daily claiming that wireless carriers are in discussions with Apple to launch the iPhone 5 in that country as soon as November.

Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s iPhone 5 may start selling in Russia in November, “almost immediately” after sales begin in the U.S., RBC Daily reported, citing handset retailers it didn’t identify.

The report notes that previous iPhone models have been slow to officially make their way to Russia, setting up a large market for unauthorized device sales. Russian mobile phone operators are obviously eager to bring Apple's latest iPhone models to the country as soon as possible in order to capitalize on their popularity with official distribution.

Claims of the iPhone 5 making its way to China as soon as October have also appeared in recent days as carriers in countries around the world seek to gain access to the rumored forthcoming device as close as possible to the U.S. launch. Apple has historically staggered its international rollouts to prioritize its biggest markets and those where distribution is simplest. But a number of countries with large populations such as China, India, and Russia have often seen device launches come well after the initial wave.

Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

xionxiox Avatar
184 months ago
In Soviet Russia, iPhone come to you!....later
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
winston1236 Avatar
184 months ago
No Soviet Russia no more. Not 20+ years being it in existence. ;):rolleyes:

They are getting it late to punish them for the whole MacDefender thing.

Take that, tovarish!! :D

haha if that were true it would be hilarious
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wackymacky Avatar
184 months ago
How many people remember when they first got the original iPhone and perhaps then the 3G, and well, you were only of the few with one?

6-7 out of 10 of my work colleagues and friends now have an iPhone. Apple soon will be a top selling phone in China, India, Russia. Next we will hear that Apple is going to be the first Western Company to open a new retail store in North Korea in the last 10 years.

Who will be last last person in the world (in the range of a cellphone network) not to own an iDevice.

Kind of sad really.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bushido Avatar
184 months ago
Moscow and st Petersburg are the main city's of Russia and what are you talking about that they arnt official apple stores??? They sell apple products and only apple products....

Apple Store

MacRumors content image

and this is what u r talking about > Apple Reseller

MacRumors content image
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alex00100 Avatar
184 months ago
nah... we all buy it on ebay. iPhones in russia are very expensive, compared to US.
they better not making a month delay from official release date instead a 1/2 year as it was before(iPad 2 came 2 month later then in US and it was the fastest thing i remember) but also make it cheaper.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Discoverer Avatar
184 months ago
What are you talking about? My cousins are from Moscow and they have about 20 apple stores in that city.... Also ALOT of people can afford apple products... Your getting confused with the 1970's and today... Today a lot of people have money in western Russia... Only some parts of Russia are poor, just like the united states....

There are no Apple Stores in Russia. There are only Apple authorized resellers, which are not the same thing. Also, most Russians live on levels that go beyond poverty. That is one problem with many foreigners. They see Moscow or Petersburg and think that that's Russia. It is not. Visit Ivanovo, or Kostroma, or any other city and tell me if you can find people with "money" when most people there can't afford to pay for water.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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