Interest in iPhone 5 lower than usual, Hong Kong parallel-import shops say

The iPhone may be starting to lose its appeal in Hong Kong, if lacklustre demand and lower prices for the latest model, the iPhone 5, at parallel-import shops is anything to go by.

Hong Kong will be among the first batch of nine markets to see the official launch of iPhone 5 sales on September 21, a departure from a trend of lagging behind the United States and other regions for the latest models.
The fact that Hong Kong would be among the first places to get the new phone had hurt demand for grey-market versions, said Lau Chi-kong, who runs G-World Mobile. It sells parallel imports of phones in Sin Tat Plaza.
The lack of surprises in the device, coupled with an abundance of smartphone competitors, also hurt demand, Lau said.
"I'm quite disappointed [in the iPhone 5], as there are no revolutionary changes. There are also too many models, such as those of Samsung, on the market."