Apple's $3000 iPhone.

By Sinead Carew Tue Jun 26, 4:11 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Apple Inc. said on Tuesday its hotly anticipated iPhone could cost as much as $3,000 with a required two-year service contract, but a handful of eager fans still lined up early to spend their money.

A small clutch of gadget enthusiasts staked out spots in front of Apple's store on New York's Fifth Avenue, days before the iPhone goes on sale on Friday evening 6 p.m. local time.

Plenty of potential iPhone consumers have said they would wait for Apple's next versions of the device to buy it, hoping for a lower price and faster network connection.

But industry analysts expect the first iPhone to sell quickly, at least in its initial months. Jessica Rodriguez, a 24-year-old student from the Bronx, seems to agree with them.

"I love everything Apple, and this is going to be something that goes down in the history books of cell phones," she told Reuters. [more]

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