I tried the store once, they wanted to take my phone number so they could text me when it was my turn. Since I was there to get my first text-ready phone, that kinda wouldn’t work. So they wanted to email me. Hello! I’m here, my email is at home. Completely incompetent in their inability to help someone not already “hip”.
Now I just buy from the website. I don’t have to talk to anyone, I get exactly what I want, and they deliver it to me.
All the responses, including from those who seem pro Apple Store, make me wonder why anybody would go there. There are plenty of other places you can go see and buy Apple stuff, Apple’s own website sells just about everything Apple make, and plenty of informed advice on blogs and YouTube. Aside from fanboys on release day, who wants the hassle?
Mostly for the Tech support (the Genius Bar, or as Sheldon would say, the “Genius” Bar).
I was in a weird store once where I had to find what I wanted to buy, then take it to a counter to pay for it. Can’t remember where that was.
What? You mean Apple doesn’t hire any actual geniuses?
Genius does not necessarily equal competent.
My experience is that there are one or two employees carrying iPads who are controlling the service queues for all the other employees. You check in with that person. If that person tells you to go somewhere and wait, you go there and wait. The stores have a huge queue of people to serve, including those who have made appointments and those who are walk ins. So, you can be waiting a long time, but eventually someone will get to you.
Apparently, it’s just as confusing in England:
Was it a store in which many of the products were small and expensive?
Yes, definitely this. When things are working right, Apple provides a premium service, even if some times you have to stand around falling in love with the newest gadget before you get that service.
My wife recently took her 5 year old Mac book in because one of the keys had fallen off the keyboard. Apple could have said, “$120 to replace the keyboard,” or, “you know the M2 chip just came out,” but instead they said, “I think I have some replacement key caps in the back, give me 5 minutes” [5 minutes later] “Here you go, all fixed, no charge, have a nice day!”
The whole time we were there some other Apple person was helping somebody else at our table with a 4 year old iPhone. I’m not sure what the problem was, but it mostly seemed to be hand holding in how to use the phone.
Recently somebody at work reported his Air was acting weird, so we walked it over to the Apple store across the street. In a few minutes the tech diagnosed it as a bad USB port, apologized they couldn’t replace it in store, and asked if we wanted the return shipment (in two days) to the store, the office, or my colleague’s house.
I know there are horror stories about Apple service and support, the thing is those are very much the exception.
Admittedly I’m in a smaller town, but it’s never been a hassle. They have the broadest range of product on display in the store with staff far more knowledgeable that at any other Apple retailer in the area. And when I need repairs, they’re right there.
A lot of the time, when I just want some accessory,as I said above, I can just do the walk in, pickup, scan, pay and leave thing. Can be in and out in five minutes.
When my son was twelve or so, he told me his iPod wouldn’t charge. I took him to an Apple Store, planning to surprise him by buying him a new iPod. When I mentioned to the guy that his iPod wouldn’t charge, he took it and began looking it over. Then he told us to wait a few minutes.
He disappeared into the back, then returned with a perfectly functioning iPod. Somehow a wad of the sticky goo used to hold subscription cards in magazines had gotten into the charging port. The guy was so proud of himself for getting it out. He was telling everyone who would listen about it. No charge! (Well, the iPod charged fine, but I paid nothing)
Of course, all those helpful people have to be paid, so I guess that explains the premium prices and the determination to make customers fall into line with the Apple philosophy.
I seem to remember a lot of soup cans, milk jugs, and bags of sugar.
Well, do you think that perhaps there’s a good reason why Apple Stores keep the merchandise secure prior to purchase?
I was not the person you were responding to, which was @Robot_Arm . I was just making a joke.
Apple keeping expensive small items out of reach of customers is in line with every other electronics store I’ve been to. You can walk in and buy anything else you want right off the shelf but not phones worth $1000+, you can’t do that at Best Buy either. Phones, laptops, etc are also in locked cabinets there as well so I’m not sure why Apple is being singled out as doing something different.
I’ve been to the Apple Store several times. The first time I visited Japan, I went there almost every day to send email to my husband…
Oh, like, for ordinary consumer stuff? I’ve bought most of the Apple stuff on-line, but I’ve gotten a lot of service in-person at the Apple store. They are quite good. One of the perks of buying a Mac is that it comes bundled with a year of excellent service.
Well, there’s something odd about Apple stores. They just give off a weird vibe.
They look different than any other of the adjacent stores in the mall. The sales staff and customers act differently than any other store. And for the first couple minutes, you just feel lost.
I’ve only been to the Apple store once, and knew exactly what I wanted to buy. But it was a slightly odd feeling.
As soon as I stepped through the door,. I just sort of stopped and stared, not knowing in which direction to walk. I was looking into an big open place with huge glass-topped table/display cases. Each had a dozen people standing around the table, but it was unclear why. Were they employees, or customers? Some were having conversations, some where just standing there.
There was no information desk at the entrance, and nobody who seemed to be interested in guiding me to make my purchase, or even noticing that I was there. There were no signs to indicate “phones over here, laptops over there”.
I stood there for a full minute or two . standing still like a deer suddenly caught in the headlights of a car. Then I decided to be a bit rude, and just interrupt somebody to ask how I can buy an iphone 11.
They were polite and pointed to the big rectangular table over there, told me to go stand around it and wait for a salesman to help me. So I walk over there, and stand helplessly for a minute or two. Then a sales guy approached me, and was very helpful. From that point on, it went very smoothly, and I got good service and made my purchase easily.
But the first couple minutes was definitely a bit disorienting.
So was I, somewhat. I don’t begrudge Apple wanting to keep their expensive and easily-pocketable merchandise in a somewhat secure setting. But even once you got someone to retrieve your item(s) from the Back Room, I don’t remember if there’s a counter or point-of-sale terminal (what we old codgers used to call a “cash register”) to make the purchase. I suspect the roving genii have iPhones with credit card readers on them. The stores are just lacking some of the usual context of traditional retail establishments.