Apple halts sale of iPhone 4S amid customer anger

Apple fever: A woman is dragged away by police officers after she refused to leave the Apple store in Beijing Friday. An angry crowd shouted and threw eggs at Apple's Beijing flagship store after it failed to open on schedule Friday to sell the popular smartphones. (AP/Andy Wong)Apple Inc. postponed sales of its iPhone 4S in its mainland China stores Friday after angry customers and gangs of scalpers threw eggs at the company's flagship Beijing store.

The violence erupted after the store failed to open on schedule at 7 a.m. Hundreds of people waited overnight in freezing weather at the store in the Sanlitun district on Beijing's east side for a chance to buy the high-end smartphone.

The company said it canceled the opening due to safety concerns about the waiting crowd of hundreds of people.

Apple announced the iPhone 4S will not be sold at its mainland China stores for the time being to protect the safety of customers and employees. It said the phone still will be sold online and through its local carrier. (mtq)