The Times UK reported earlier this morning that about 60 people had congregated outside of Apple's flagship store on 5th Avenue in New York in anticipation of the launch of the second-generation iPhone. We were initially planning on going up there to ask people what could possibly compel them to stand in line in 100-degree heat to wait for a product they probably wouldn't even be able to buy for six days, but when we called the store to confirm that people were in fact waiting, the operator told us he wasn't allowed to comment. Then we called back again 15 minutes later and got someone else on the phone, who told us there was no queue to speak of.

Are people waiting for the damn thing or not? We headed over to the Apple store in Soho to find out for ourselves.

At the least, we figured we'd talk to some employees about how they planned on dealing with the hordes of Apple fanatics poised to swarm the store like so many Mac-wielding locusts as soon as the iPhone becomes available.

As for any queue: Nothing of the sort. The store was actually quieter than usual. We asked Matt, a bald-headed, middle-aged Apple employee patrolling the ground floor, if he was excited about the launch. "We have no idea about a new product launch," he said with a straight face. "You'll just have to watch the keynote speech and find out." Why would I watch the keynote speech if there was no new product coming out? Matt glared at us but uttered only, "No comment."

Two other Apple employees were similarly tight-lipped. Had anyone come in to ask about the iPhone? "We have no comment." Do you expect big lines? "We have no comment." Is there even a new iPhone coming out? "We have no comment, but we can gladly direct you to Apple's PR people," one of them responded with more than a tinge of annoyance. Christ. Can you at least confirm that it's hot as hell out? "That we can confirm, yes."