Two weeks ago, plans for Apple to move its flagship retail store in San Francisco a couple blocks away to a new space in Union Square was met with a lot of positivity from politicians and city planners, and it seemed like a done deal. But perhaps not, because apparently, Apple’s plans for the new Apple Store also involve ripping up a beloved fountain currently on the same spot.
Apple is having some trouble with its signature store on 5th Avenue in NYC. The company rebuilt the glass cube above the store so it will have less seams, but ever since the renovation was finished Apple has had not one, but two leaks.
A rain storm hit New York City yesterday, and just like two weeks ago, the roof of the 5th Ave store began to bulge with large deposits of water that then leaked and flooded the lower level. To make matters worse, the roof of the Apple Store in SoHo sprung a leak too.
One Apple Store customer got the entire scene on video this time. You can watch the 5th Ave Geniuses scramble to solve the flooding after the jump:
Apple might unveil a new iPad mini at WWDC, but if the rumors are true that it might not have a Retina display, then you might want to consider getting a first gen iPad mini.
The Online Apple Store just dropped the price on all refurbished iPad mini and iPad 4 models today. The price drops aren’t huge (although a lot of models are not $100 cheaper than a brand new unit), but it’s a better deal than buying one brand new and you get the same warranty.
Here are the new prices:
Not only are Apple Stores some of the most popular retail stores on the planet, they’re also the most successful. This year Apple Stores have continued to outpace the entire industry, and as a result Apple is now making more money per visitor than ever before.
According to some analysis by Horace Dediu at Asymco, last quarter the number of Apple Store visitors grew 7%, and as a result Apple earned a record of $57.60 in revenue from each visitor.
Apple’s current flagship store in San Francisco is in something of a cramped location, so Apple wants to move it three blocks away, to Union Square.
T-Mobile had that slamming deal on the iPhone 5 to kick off its rebranding as “The Uncarrier” but those fun and happy days are all gone.
The Uncarrier has decided to bump up the down payment price of the iPhone 5 from $99 to $149 without ever really telling anyone that the $99 price was just a promotion.
Apple looks to be building another retail store in Beijing, which could open its doors in time for the launch of new iPhones and iPads this fall. Construction has begun on a building that bears a strong resemblance to a typical Apple retail outlet in Beijing’s China Central Place Shopping Center.
The Apple Store on Fifth Avenue is one of the most iconic retail stores on the planet, but a leaky roof caused everything to go into disarray on Tuesday morning as water poured into the store.
A small leak sent water pouring into the west side of the store this morning around 8AM. The New York Post reports that Apple employees quickly went to work on removing the water, but there were only about 15 customers in the store at the time.
There are 10 Apple stores in Germany, and another was opened today in the nation’s capital. After two years of construction, Berlin’s first Apple store was welcomed by thousands of eager customers and nearly 200 cheering employees. Lines started wrapping around the block 10 hours before the doors opened.
Working at the Apple Store has its benefits. You get sweet discounts on Macs and iPhones. You get to talk about Apple products all day. And you get an endless supply of cool Apple t-shirts.
A Genius Bar employee posted the photo above of all the t-shirt’s he’s received while working for the Apple Store at the Westchester Mall in New York. There’s 45 t-shirts total, though Apple’s had many more that aren’t pictured. Which one has been your favorite?
Click here for a higher res picture.
Source: Reddit
Samsung warned us that its Apple Store clones were on the way, and this week they’ve begun popping up in Best Buy stores across the United States. Dubbed “Samsung Experience Shops,” the locations give customers the chance to get their hands on Samsung smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other devices so that they can try them out before making a purchase.
Apple has updated its Apple Store app for the iPhone to introduce push notifications for delivery updates. So when you order an item from the Apple Store, you’ll receive updates on its delivery status without having to check manually. The Cupertino company will even let you know when your iPhone is ready for an upgrade.
The Genius Bar is a little sparse, and the flooring never would have been approved by Steve Jobs, but if you find yourself in Kabul with a deep thirst for the latest Apple gadgetry, the unofficial Apple Store of Afghanistan is the place to go.
While Apple has been busy dominating the retail world with its highly profitably shops, poor Afghanistan has been left without an official Apple Store to call its own, so someone decided to open one up.
Why is it that some people can walk into their local Apple Store with a broken MacBook and walk away with a free replacement, and other people are turned away, with Apple claiming the repair is due to user error… even if it isn’t?
It has less to do with whether or not you actually voided your warranty than if Apple thinks they can prove you voided your warranty. And the most important tool Apple uses to prove you’re responsible for the damage to your own machine? It’s a tool that inspects dents.
For the many years I lived in Berlin, one of the perpetual frustrations I had was that there was no Apple Store in the city to shop at. A few weeks after I moved, Apple leased a historical theater in West Berlin’s Kurfürstendamm and started renovating it to be the country’s biggest Apple Store.
Now the scaffolding’s coming off, ahead of the official launch, and iFun.de not only has some great pictures of the process of the newest Apple Store being revealed… there’s some video of the inside. Video after the jump.
Following yesterday’s horrific blasts that left three dead and over a hundred wounded at the Boston Marathon, the nearby Apple Street Boylston store has been closed temporarily.
Steam! That’s what Steve Jobs would have had rocket from his ears when he heard about Facebook Home. We’ll explain why on our newest CultCast, but also covet aloud the one feature we hope Apple borrows for iOS. Plus, inside Leander Kahney’s Jony Ive book; Ron Johnson father of the Apple Store takes a boot to the rear; and we wrap with an all new Faves ‘N Raves, the segment where we pitch our favorite tech and apps then vote on which one’s best!
Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing now on iTunes, or hit play below and let the good times roll.
Click on through for the show notes.
Apple’s online store has never really been suited to mobile devices. Sure, there’s the Apple Store app for the iPhone, but navigating to the actual website on iOS isn’t the best experience. On the iPhone, the desktop site is squeezed into a narrow, 4-inch display. You have to zoom in to actually interact with and read any part of the site.
Some recent changes help to improve navigating the Apple online store on touch-based devices. Apple has added a scrollable navigation bar under product categories that lets you quickly jump to different pages. Search results for specific products are now displayed in a cleaner grid layout as well. You can click on an icon to open the product page. These improvements look particularly good on the iPad.
Source: Apple
Apple and T-Mobile have begun pre-orders for the iPhone 5. The launch date for the iPhone 5 is scheduled for April 12th, so if you’re eager to jump the gun on the T-Mobile iPhone 5, here’s your chance.
T-Mobile is the last of the four major carriers in the U.S. to start selling the iPhone. To attract new customers, T-Mobile is selling the iPhone 5 for $99 without a cellular service contract. Although the carrier is still working to expand its LTE network as fast as possible, customer might not mind the service renovations in exchange of a cheaper monthly bill.
Source: T-Mobile
Given that Samsung clearly likes to follow in Apple’s footsteps, it comes as no surprise to us that it is set to open 1,400 Apple-esque Experience Shops in Best Buy stores throughout the United States.
The Korean company is aiming to give potential customers the opportunity to get their hands on its mobile products and “experience how the devices connect together to enrich their lives” before they decide to purchase them. Specially trained “Samsung Experience Consultants” will also be there to offer post-purchase support.
Earlier this morning we found out that Best Buy is selling Retina display iPads for $30 off, and it looks like Walmart may have a similar deal on the iPad mini.
Depending on the zip code you live in, Walmart is offering the 16GB iPad mini Wifi-only models for $299. That’s 30 bucks cheaper than buying it directly from Apple. Walmart’s offering both standard shipping and in-store pickup depending on the availability of units in your area. If you’ve been on the fence about embracing the iPad mini, this is the lowest price on new units that we’ve seen so far.
Source: Walmart
Via: DealNews
Despite all its problems with the ‘iPhone’ trademark in Brazil, Apple is trying to get its devices in as many Brazilian hands as possible by slashing prices on the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S.
Apple has been getting pounded by the Chinese press lately for its warranty policies service and not talking to the press whenever they want a statement (welcome to Apple news my friends). Hoping to end the onslaught from the government-supported press, Apple issued an apology letter to Chinese customers signed by Tim Cook.
The letter, which was written in Chinese and posted to Apple’s website, said that Tim Cook and the rest of the company have been reflecting on the feedback regarding its warranty policies and apologizes the poor communication that has made customers so angry.
LEGOs are one of the greatest toys ever invented. You can build pretty much anything you can dream of with them. Even a car. They’re amazing.
We’ve seen tons of Apple-inspired LEGO projects over the last couple of years, from LEGO Apple Store replicas, to a working LEGO Mac Pro. There is no limit to the creativity you can achieve with LEGOs, but these best LEGO projects we’ve ever seen:
No one launches a product like Apple. There are lines, and fanboys, and cheering, and crying. It’s truly amazing. But what if Apple Stores were stocked full of beer instead of gadgets?
Somersby Cider made an excellent ad which parodies Apple’s product launches… only it’s all about beer. They’ve even got docking stations and different storage options for your brew.
Source: YouTube
