Sydney Morning Herald:

Samsung has ambushed the launch of the iPhone 4S by offering $2 smartphones in a temporary shop just metres away from the official Sydney Apple store. A queue – longer than that outside Apple’s store – was seen outside the Samsung “pop up” store at 8am today, with those in line hoping to get their hands on a new Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone for the nominal price of $2.

“Ambush” is a dramatic overstatement. After all, Apple’s already sold out pre-orders of the new iPhone 4S. The line may be longer now, but we’ll see what the Sydney Apple Store looks like on Friday, when the iPhone 4S actually goes on sale. But it goes to show how desperate Samsung is to stay relevant when it essentially has to give away its premium smartphone to get people interested. It’s hard to imagine Apple resorting to similar tactics.