When the iPh4S launched here (CH) last October, there were people in lines with their pre-order tickets. Since this was my first iPh, I didn't know that one had to pre-order. A few days before the launch, I stopped by the Swisscom store to ask about plans & prices; the salesgirl there failed to say anything about pre-ordering. So I stood in line to find out that "no tickey no washy" ... so I walked down the street to the next phone store ... same story ... finally I drove 5min to one of the big supermarket/department store chains here (Migros) who happens to sell electronics ... they were new to carrying the iPh and apparently few people recognized as I just waltzed in, and alone up to the counter, and bought my phone and had it activated in 5 minutes... the experience was a lot fun ... seeing the lines and then the opposite ... best thing about buying from Migros was that they extend the OEM warranty by 1 year for free and are totally cooperative when a customer makes a claim!
(Hope I win something (I also have a US address if that is important -- and if I don't, congrats to everybody who did!)