A hapless man was caught on camera dropping his brand-new iPhone down a narrow gap in a lift.
CCTV footage shows him propping the lift door open with his foot, the phone box already removed from the plastic bag.
Impatient, he tried to open the box before reaching his flat – but the lid was stubbornly tight.
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As he finally prised it off, the device slipped straight out of his hands and, in a stroke of misfortune, vanished down the thin gap beside the car door track.
The stunned man bent down to pick up part of the packaging that had landed on the floor – but there was nothing he could do about the missing phone.
The baffling scene unfolded in an unspecified part of China last Thursday (12 Feb), as reported by What’s The Jam.
Earlier that day, he had parted with more than 10,000 CNY (£1,075) to get his hands on the Apple device, local media report.
It’s unclear if he has since recovered it.
Viewers weren’t sympathetic.
Juan wrote: “This is what happens when you block the elevator.”
“Why block the elevator doors? Just wait and unbox it at home,” added Guimei.
Sammie asked: “Did they really design the phone box this way on purpose?”
And Guoxiang said: “You’ll have to wait for the yearly inspection.”
