What is going on with Apple Australia?

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Aside from their exhorbitant prices... see these threads: hardware & .mac



Here is something else I noticed earlier this week: (originally posted in News Comments.)

Quote:

Originally posted by Mac+

Well I visited the Apple Store in DJ's Melbourne (Bourke St - city) today. Very disappointing.



The products were not even turned on! I asked a sales person about this and he said, "Oh they were set up about a week ago, but nobody has come back to turn them on/set them up properly." WTF!!!



This is poor quality control of the Apple brand. And it is poor handling by Apple Australia.



Two weeks before Christmas, in one of the biggest retail stores in Melbourne and the damned things aren't even turned on!



Pitiful and ridiculous! Get a clue Apple Australia!




[rant] Obviously, I am passionate about this company and I want to see them succeed in the market place down under, so please... somebody get a foot up the backside of Apple Australia and get them into shape - in my opinion, they're a disgrace at the moment! [/rant]

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 11
    lainlain Posts: 140member
    Personally I dislike the way Apple in general works. But I like the Australian way even less



    My reason is that the Price Reduction Policy is non-existant here and Apple Australia don't give a damn. I brought a G5 and 5 friggin days later the price drops by over $300. I complained to Apple and they replied to my e-mail in the standard big ass company cliche way. My reply was that I am not still not happy with what happened... to which they did not reply... Its cool, "technically" they owe me nothing, they don't wanna go out of their way to help me out, I wont go out of my way for them. This is the first and last Apple product I will ever own.
  • Reply 2 of 11
    telomartelomar Posts: 1,804member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Lain

    My reason is that the Price Reduction Policy is non-existant here and Apple Australia don't give a damn. I brought a G5 and 5 friggin days later the price drops by over $300. I complained to Apple and they replied to my e-mail in the standard big ass company cliche way. My reply was that I am not still not happy with what happened... to which they did not reply... Its cool, "technically" they owe me nothing, they don't wanna go out of their way to help me out, I wont go out of my way for them. This is the first and last Apple product I will ever own.



    Sorry this is an argument I continually find flawed. You went to Apple and wanted to buy a product at a given price. You'd obviously considered the price and deemed it acceptable and then you complain because they decide to change it later? No offence but tough, that's life.



    If they're going to have remuneration schemes if they decide to lower prices when's the cutoff for them? 2 days? a week? 2 weeks? What about with new products? Should they have to give you a whole new piece of hardware then? No the cut off is on the day they change the prices or product. It's the same with anything. There's always the potential for a change, it's just part of the risk of purchasing. If you aren't content with the price at a given time then wait until later when it drops. Everything eventually drops when it is superseded anyway.
  • Reply 3 of 11
    lainlain Posts: 140member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Telomar

    Sorry this is an argument I continually find flawed. You went to Apple and wanted to buy a product at a given price. You'd obviously considered the price and deemed it acceptable and then you complain because they decide to change it later? No offence but tough, that's life.



    If they're going to have remuneration schemes if they decide to lower prices when's the cutoff for them? 2 days? a week? 2 weeks? What about with new products? Should they have to give you a whole new piece of hardware then? No the cut off is on the day they change the prices or product. It's the same with anything. There's always the potential for a change, it's just part of the risk of purchasing. If you aren't content with the price at a given time then wait until later when it drops. Everything eventually drops when it is superseded anyway.




    Yes indeed my argument is flawed... with human emotion. The sort of emotion you have when you hand over a lot of money for a product.



    Like I mention, they did nothing "technically" wrong. Just like If I saw somebody being beaten up and I did not interfere, I too would "technically" have done nothing wrong, but that would make me a coward or an ahole.



    Apple USA will refund the difference within 10 days of price change.
  • Reply 4 of 11
    mac+mac+ Posts: 580member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Lain

    [snip]... Apple USA will refund the difference within 10 days of price change.



    Gee, if that's true, there is another reason for my annoyance with Apple Australia. They're getting fat on profits, whilst delivering little in the way of competitive customer service, it would seem.
  • Reply 5 of 11
    lainlain Posts: 140member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Mac+

    Gee, if that's true, there is another reason for my annoyance with Apple Australia. They're getting fat on profits, whilst delivering little in the way of competitive customer service, it would seem.



    From the horse's mouth:



    "Should Apple reduce its price on any shipped product within 10 calendar days of shipment, you may contact Apple Sales Support at 1-800-676-2775 to request a refund or credit of the difference between the price you were charged and the current selling price. To receive the refund or credit you must contact Apple within 14 business days of shipment. "



    http://store.apple.com/Catalog/US/Im...spolicies.html



    --------------------------------------------------------



    "At this time we are not able to offer price protection in Australia."



    from an e-mail to me from Apple Australia dated 26/11/03.



    ----------------------------------------------------------



    Personally I have nothing against people getting fat from profits. But yeah, it would be nice to have a similar thing here.
  • Reply 6 of 11
    mac+mac+ Posts: 580member
    I've got nothing with companies getting fat from profits either - as long as there is some hard work involved somewhere along the line.



    I just think that Apple Australia is not as competitive as they could/should be at the moment.
  • Reply 7 of 11
    lainlain Posts: 140member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Mac+

    I just think that Apple Australia is not as competitive as they could/should be at the moment.



    Who should they be competing with? PC manufacturers like Dell? To compete with them would be to stoop down to their level.



    My opinion is that they know that their users are either loyal or dependant on them (ie Graphic Design industry), so price wise they dont care to compete with PCs.



    I think that there is more to Mac's higher prices that Apple's need (or greed) for profit. Higher prices give a preceived higher value to a product.
  • Reply 8 of 11
    mac+mac+ Posts: 580member
    Lain - I'm referring to the ridiculously high cost of .mac pricing, the poor set-up in DJ's (Melbourne) before the busiest spending time of the year, the inability to offer price protection - it's just as much about the lack of services offered as it is about the high hardware cost.



    As for:
    Quote:

    Higher prices give a preceived higher value to a product.



    I don't want Apple to regress to the days when margins were high just because they could be... that mentality (it could be argued) almost killed them.



    I think Apple Australia needs to be aware that many in industry will not switch to Apple as readily as they'd like to believe.



    I still think that cheaper prices are needed in addition to a professional range of services to back up the competitive pricing.



    I don't mind paying a higher price for a quality product - but there must be value in it. I certainly don't want to be paying a higher price just because Apple Australia think they are justified in trying to create a perception that their product and services are more valuable than their competitors.



    People that opt for a bottom line on price are more often than not forced to settle for an inferior proudct, but then they learn (or are forced) to live with it. When I pay a higher price for Apple product, I know that I am getting a better computing experience (especially in terms of User Interface and aesthetic design of the hardware) than those who opt not to purchase Apple product.



    Most of the buying public forget this all too often:

    The quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten!



    However, if the price is too high or the services too poor, then I will not make the purchase, and I suspect many others who are thinking of switching may feel similarly. I just wish Apple Australia were more aware of this and "pulled their finger out" - they could begin by bringing their .mac pricing into line, ensuring that their "store within a store" concept is overseen to perfection and instigating a "price protection policy" like their parent company in the US does.
  • Reply 9 of 11
    lainlain Posts: 140member
    I totaly agree with you Mac+.



    I guess its just a questions of what Apple wants to be?McDonalds or a 5 Star restaurant.
  • Reply 10 of 11
    mac+mac+ Posts: 580member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Lain

    I totaly agree with you Mac+.



    I guess its just a questions of what Apple wants to be?McDonalds or a 5 Star restaurant.




    Hey Lain - I wasn't having a dig at you



    ... I was just hyped up with my "C'mon Apple Australia" rant - there is soooo much they could/should be doing.
  • Reply 11 of 11
    lainlain Posts: 140member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Mac+

    Hey Lain - I wasn't having a dig at you



    ... I was just hyped up with my "C'mon Apple Australia" rant - there is soooo much they could/should be doing.




    LOL, I did not think so.



    I am just arguing with somebody on another forum so a certain tone might have carried itself over... I apologise, I did not intend to sound as if I felt u were having a go at me.



    Cheers!
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