SALT LAKE CITY — The iPhone 5 is set to hit stores Friday, and crowds are lining up across the country. It's no different at the Apple Store at the Gateway Mall in Salt Lake.

Both the Apple company and its customers are hoping the new iPhone will be a hit, but the Salt Lake campers are also hoping to be the first to get their hands on one.

The first question we had when we saw the line was why? Why would hundreds camp out overnight for a phone?

"I thought about that, but this is an experience," Apple camper April Roberts said.

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Others had a simpler answer.

"Because we're all Apple nerds!" said Ashly Gudmundson, a resident of West Valley.

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By 7 p.m. Thursday, 100 "Apple nerds," and one very cute dog, were stationed at the Gateway Apple store — all aching to get their hands on Apple's newest creation.

"They'll probably be 150 or so (campers) by midnight, and I would imagine maybe up to 1,000 by morning," said Ben Zeeman, a University of Utah student.

The iPhone 5 is the latest and greatest smartphone. With it, you can check your email, surf the Internet, take pictures and shoot video, and even answer a phone call.

The phone's features include being lighter than previous models. It has a bigger screen, a new operating system and a better camera

"I think everything that it has is pretty solid," Zeeman said. "And like I said, it's the fastest phone on the market right now."

The iPhone goes on sale Friday at 8 a.m. sharp. The Apple folks here are extremely tight- lipped about how many phones they currently have.

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