An iPhone 4 is displayed inside an Apple Store in New York City.
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iPhone 4 sale to start on Friday
iPad 2s arriving at Apple Store (thanks Caleb)
The iPad 2 launched to long lines on Friday and selling out in many locations. Based on reader reports, there are still pockets of stock in various locations, but a large number of locations are still sold out of the units. Part of the difficulty has been the large variety of models of the iPad 2 available. With 3 different storage capacities, 2 colors and 3 different wireless configurations (WiFi, Verizon, AT&T). Customers may have had trouble finding the exact configuration they wanted.
AT&T/GSM 3G models were in particularly high demand as many of the early purchasers were sending them off internationally to other GSM-compatible countries.
If past launches are any indication, retail stores will get almost daily replenishment of stock. Apple is not providing any online indicators which stores have stock. Meanwhile, BestBuy does have an online system that seems to reflect local store inventory.
Finally, those hoping to pick up an iPad 2 from the online Apple Store will now find that the wait for online orders has extended to 3-4 weeks. Online customers are organizing in this discussion thread to see when shipments are being sent out.
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As expected, Apple’s “secret” meeting for retail store employees last night was in fact targeted at sharing information on the company’s forthcoming “Joint Venture” service that will roll out over the next few days, primarily focusing on providing advanced and priority technical support to small businesses.
9 to 5 Mac and our own sources have provided a few details on the program, which will cost $499 per year for up to five machines and $99 per year for each additional machine. The program offers a number of benefits, including:
- Genius Bar telephone support and priority access: Users will be able to receive call-in technical support from Apple Geniuses rather than having to visit an Apple Store. Those that do elect to stop by an Apple Store for in-person consultations will receive priority access.
- Loaner computers: For repairs scheduled to take more than 24 hours, Apple will provide loaner 15-inch MacBook Pros to carry users through while their own machines are out of commission.
- Workshops and setup: Specialized workshops will be held to assist small businesses with increasing the effectiveness of their Macs and other devices. Apple Geniuses will also provide setup for new machines, including data transfers and configuration of Microsoft Exchange and other services to work with companies’ existing systems.
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While not all the rumors leading up to the launch were true, many of the last minute leaks were accurate, and Apple still managed to sneak in a few surprises.
Apple launched the new MacBook Pros this morning after much anticipation. For the first time ever, Apple has included Quad Core CPUs into their notebooks. The 15″ and 17″ models offer Quad Core CPUs using the Intel 2.2GHz Quad Core 2720QM and 2.0GHz Quad Core 2630QM. While many applications may not take advantage of all 4 cores, these new Sandy Bridge processors include Intel’s Turbo Boost 2.0, which should increase the speed of the remaining cores when the others are underutilized.
Intel Turbo Boost Technology 2.0 automatically allows processor cores to run faster than the base operating frequency if it’s operating below power, current, and temperature specification limits.
The maximum Turbo clock speeds for the 2720QM and 2630QM are 3.2GHz and 2.9GHz respectively.
Apple has also introduced a hybrid Thunderbolt/mini Display port on the new MacBook Pros. This represents Intel’s Light Peak technology which is said to offer high speed connections and is expected to replace the need for USB 3.0. We expect to hear more about it this afternoon at Intel’s press conference. From Apple’s PR:
“Thunderbolt is a revolutionary new I/O technology that delivers an amazing 10 gigabits per second and can support every important I/O standard which is ideal for the new MacBook Pro.”
Apple has posted a page dedicated to Thunderbolt.
The new models are at the Apple Store:
-17″ 1920×1200 Display. 2.2Ghz Quad i7. 4GB RAM. 750GB HD. AMD 6750M 1GB. $2499
-15″ 1440×900 (1680 option) Display. 2.2GHz Quad i7. 750GB HD. AMD 6750M 1GB. $2199.
-15″ 1440×900 (1680 option) Display. 2.0GHz Quad i7. 4GB RAM. 500GB HD. AMD 6490M 256MB. $1799
-13″ 1280×800 Display. 2.7GHz Dual i7. 4GB RAM. 500GB HD. Intel HD Graphics. $1499
-13″ 1280×800 Display. 2.3GHz Dual i5. 4GB RAM. 320GB HD. Intel HD Graphics. $1199
Full specs available here
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Apple’s flagship Fifth Avenue store in Manhattan (Source: CNET)
With much of the country seeing frigid overnight temperatures, some shoppers may have opted to not stand in the cold while others may have taken advantage of home delivery options for the device, but lines still seem much shorter than expected. CNET is running a live blog with staffers in both New York City and San Francisco, and flagship Apple stores in both locations saw nearly no line ahead of early openings at 7:00 AM local time.
New York 6:50 a.m. ET: It’s 18 degrees here in New York City, and there are now eight people in line at the Fifth Ave. Apple store. Queens resident Akira Sawada, 32, is first in line–he arrived at 5 a.m. There are more Apple employees inside the Apple store than there are outside.
New York 7:07 a.m. ET: People are in the Apple store. The line of about 10 people was quickly ushered in at 7 a.m. We are now waiting to talk to people who are walking out of the store.
A similar situation was seen in San Francisco, where cold temperatures couldn’t be blamed for low turnout. According to CNET, only two people were in line at Apple’s Stockton Street flagship store just minutes before opening, with “literally more Apple Store employees, police officers and reporters–each–than people in line to buy iPhones.”
Apple’s Salem, NH store one hour after opening
We’ve received sporadic reports of significantly longer lines at some Verizon stores, but still nowhere near what many had expected.
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Apple today announced that it will be joining Verizon in offering pre-orders of the new Verizon iPhone to existing Verizon customers as of tomorrow.
Apple today announced an exclusive opportunity for Verizon Wireless’ 94 million customers to pre-order iPhone 4 online beginning on Thursday, February 3 through the Apple Store (www.apple.com) and at www.verizonwireless.com/iphone. Due to high demand, customer orders will be fulfilled on a first come, first served basis.
The company also announced that all other customers can begin ordering the Verizon iPhone for delivery or in-store pickup beginning next Wednesday, February 9th, although handsets won’t be available for pickup until the following day.
Apple’s retail stores will open at 7:00 AM on Thursday, February 10th to allow customers to purchase the Verizon iPhone, with Verizon’s 2,000 retail stores also offering availability. A day-by-day timeline of the launch process is posted on Apple’s site.
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Apple Store Down – White iPhone On the Way?
Wednesday January 26, 2011 01:08 AM EST
Written by Arnold Kim
Rating (16 Positives; 8 Negatives)
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Visit any Apple Store, or one of those phone-accessory kiosks in the mall, and you’ll find a wide selection of iPhone 4 cases.
Continued here:
Cases that fit Verizon’s iPhone 4 may be in short supply
Visit any Apple Store, or one of those phone-accessory kiosks in the mall, and you’ll find a wide selection of iPhone 4 cases.
Continued here:
Cases that fit Verizon’s iPhone 4 may be in short supply
TUAW reports that it has heard from “an anonymous tipster” that Apple will be expanding its presence at Best Buy stores, adding more products and even going as far as to add Genius Bars in some locations.
An anonymous tipster who works at a Best Buy store let us know this morning that he was informed by his Apple rep that the Apple section of the computer department will be going through a transition sometime this Spring to allow more products to be displayed. At the same time, the stores will get a Genius Bar, up to this time a fixture only at Apple Stores.
While the accuracy of the claim is unknown at this time, such a development would seem to mark a significant change for Apple, which has relied heavily on its own retail stores for providing face-to-face support for its users. Beyond its own stores, support services for Apple’s products are currently offered through a network of authorized service providers, but bringing full-fledged Genius Bars to Best Buy locations could extend the “Apple Store experience” on a small scale to areas currently unserved by Apple’s retail stores.
Also unknown is how Best Buy’s Genius Bars would be staffed. While Best Buy does support sales of Apple products with its own employees, Apple does employ a network of Apple Solutions Consultants at some Best Buy locations to provide expertise in Apple products. Consequently, it is unclear whether Best Buy Genius Bars would be staffed by Best Buy or Apple employees.
About two-thirds of Best Buy’s approximately 1,000 U.S. locations currently feature dedicated “Apple Shop” sections for Apple products.
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