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The economic crisis might have affected plenty of Greek households, but apparently some habits are hard to change. On the first day of the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus hitting the Greek market, people flocked to the shops intent to lay their hands on the new smartphones. Most even had them pre-ordered and prepaid.

Market pundits estimate that 10,000 iPhones will have been sold in Greece by Monday night, and a total of 50,000 will go by the end of the year: these are the numbers roughly ordered for the Greek market.

These are stunning numbers if you take into account how exorbitantly pricey the new iPhones are: without contracts, € 739 for iPhone 6 and € 859 for iPhone 6 plus.

New supplies are expected next week to meet demand. According to company orders of the past few days, 8 out of 10 customers have chosen iPhone 6, and quite a few have ordered models with a larger memory (64 instead of 16 GB), despite the fact that it shifts the price tag in the wrong direction by roughly 100 euros.

Offers

Yesterday, cell phone companies and chain stores launched special promotions for the new models, and suppliers have already started the tug-of-war over better offers to their subscribers packaged with a new iPhone.

Vodafone announced that subscribers can obtain an iPhone marked down to 300 euros depending on contract type and length. Similar 24-month contracts are on offer from other companies as well. iPhone 6 has a 4.7 inch screen, and comes in gold, gray or silver.

Meanwhile, SquareTrade, an extended warranty service provider for consumer electronics and appliances, announced that its survey has shown that residents of the southern Mediterranean, and especially the Greeks (about 40% of smartphone owners) have had to replace or repair their faulty smartphones in the last two years.

The company’s Europe-wide survey covered the past two years.