Apple unveils holiday shopping in-store pickup option

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  • Reply 21 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by blogorant View Post


    I wish Apple would just call it what it is, Christmas. They use a wrapped gift in the piece and note the heavy use of the color red. Gosh, looks like a Christmas themed ad to me. They even went so far as to say "With Reserve and Pick Up, you can make sure the top things on your list are definitely under the tree"



    What tree would that be, Apple?



    "Christmas" is offensive to a lot of people in this World. I dare you to say "Merry Christmas" to a Muslim.



    Jews aren't real big on the Christmas thing either.



    My company doesn't have a Christmas party, we have a Holiday party.



    Yeah, it's political correctness to the extreme, but why run the risk of offending anyone?



    if you search for Christmas @ amazon or walmart you'll see the only hits you get are for goods (like music) with Christmas in the title.
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  • Reply 22 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by milkmage View Post


    ...um. put it back on the shelf? BTO orders are not supported, so what's the big deal?



    if you have it shipped you need to be around to sign for it (waste of a day). If you opt to pre-sign for anything over $100 bucks, you're a fool.



    it's much more convenient if you can just do a drive by and pick things up on your schedule, not UPS's or FedEx's. Apple stores are crowded enough, they're absolute hell during the holidays. I'll bet they're going to have a couple folks at the front of the store servicing pickups only.



    reservations also helps Apple stock appropriately as well. reduces the changes they'll be out of something on 12/24.



    Totally agree, I wish Apple would allow us to pickup BTO at a local Apple store. I hate waiting for the truck, I feel like I'm trapped in my house since the truck has a nasty habit or arriving if I step out for one minute. Apple would be out nothing, if I don't pick it up then they already have the info to charge me the restocking fee. I don't see that there is that much difference between this and having something delivered as far as returning goes, other than there is no doubt that the package has not been opened if it is still in store when I decide not to buy.
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  • Reply 23 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by milkmage View Post


    "Christmas" is offensive to a lot of people in this World. I dare you to say "Merry Christmas" to a Muslim.



    Jews aren't real big on the Christmas thing either.



    My company doesn't have a Christmas party, we have a Holiday party.



    Yeah, it's political correctness to the extreme, but why run the risk of offending anyone?



    if you search for Christmas @ amazon or walmart you'll see the only hits you get are for goods (like music) with Christmas in the title.



    Others cannot offend us, and this is key, we have to allow ourselves to become offended. Political correctness in our country has now morphed from an occasional annoyance devoid of common sense to a crippling and debilitating disease. You don't have to look any farther than the events late this week at Ft. Hood to see what Political Correctness is doing to the USA.



    If I worked for a company, for example, in a majority Muslim society I would full well expect a company Ramadan party or a Chanukah party in Israel. The only offense I would take is if I weren't invited As a Christian or as a non-believer I would enjoy learning about these faiths and taking part in these observances while staying faithful to my own beliefs.



    A lot of people seem to be misinterpreting "freedom of religion" lately as spelled out in our US Constitution. They seem to think it is actually promising freedom FROM religion, which is just not the case (for those not in the US our constitution specifies freedom OF religion). If 76% of the US population self identify as Christian and 4% as non-Christian (Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism) who are we really offending?



    Shouldn't I be offended by Apple (and every other retailer) taking advantage of an overwhelmingly Christian holiday and omitting, as if they were were ashamed of saying it, the word Christmas? If they're going to take this road then they really need to take it and not be so hypocritical. You don't want to mention Christmas? Great! But don't extend your store hours, conduct any sales, decorate, increase your inventory, pretend to gift wrap or ramp up for Nov 26th to Dec 24th in any way whatsoever. Just treat them like any other days of the year.



    By the way... Walmart is running TV ads using the word Christmas in very big letters. I saw one just this morning.
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  • Reply 24 of 49
    chris_cachris_ca Posts: 2,543member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by milkmage View Post


    "Christmas" is offensive to a lot of people in this World.



    No it's not. They may not celebrate it or think anything special of it but most are not "offended" by it.

    Quote:

    I dare you to say "Merry Christmas" to a Muslim.



    Happens all the time.

    And Muslims say, "Assalaamu alaykum? to non-muslims all the time.

    Quote:

    Jews aren't real big on the Christmas thing either.



    So? They are not offended by it.

    Quote:

    My company doesn't have a Christmas party, we have a Holiday party.



    Then according to your rules, that would be offensive to the non-religious or those that do not have holidays at the end of the year.

    Quote:

    Yeah, it's political correctness to the extreme, but why run the risk of offending anyone?



    I wouldn't risk offending anyone. I would simply be wishing them well according to my Christian beliefs.
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  • Reply 25 of 49
    I don't agree with you on a few points, but I must say, I really appreciate this post. One of the best I've ever read. You make some very, very good points I think we should all pay some attention to. Thanks.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by blogorant View Post


    Others cannot offend us, and this is key, we have to allow ourselves to become offended. Political correctness in our country has now morphed from an occasional annoyance devoid of common sense to a crippling and debilitating disease. You don't have to look any farther than the events late this week at Ft. Hood to see what Political Correctness is doing to the USA.



    If I worked for a company, for example, in a majority Muslim society I would full well expect a company Ramadan party or a Chanukah party in Israel. The only offense I would take is if I weren't invited As a Christian or as a non-believer I would enjoy learning about these faiths and taking part in these observances while staying faithful to my own beliefs.



    A lot of people seem to be misinterpreting "freedom of religion" lately as spelled out in our US Constitution. They seem to think it is actually promising freedom FROM religion, which is just not the case (for those not in the US our constitution specifies freedom OF religion). If 76% of the US population self identify as Christian and 4% as non-Christian (Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism) who are we really offending?



    Shouldn't I be offended by Apple (and every other retailer) taking advantage of an overwhelmingly Christian holiday and omitting, as if they were were ashamed of saying it, the word Christmas? If they're going to take this road then they really need to take it and not be so hypocritical. You don't want to mention Christmas? Great! But don't extend your store hours, conduct any sales, decorate, increase your inventory, pretend to gift wrap or ramp up for Nov 26th to Dec 24th in any way whatsoever. Just treat them like any other days of the year.



    By the way... Walmart is running TV ads using the word Christmas in very big letters. I saw one just this morning.



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  • Reply 26 of 49
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chris_CA View Post


    No it's not. They may not celebrate it or think anything special of it but most are not "offended" by it.



    Happens all the time.

    And Muslims say, "Assalaamu alaykum” to non-muslims all the time.



    So? They are not offended by it.



    Then according to your rules, that would be offensive to the non-religious or those that do not have holidays at the end of the year.



    I wouldn't risk offending anyone. I would simply be wishing them well according to my Christian beliefs.



    I disagree with this. Christmas, despite parts have pagan roots and the urrent commercial focus, it stll has a very strong tie to the representative birth of Christ, something non-Christians disagree with.



    Before Current Era(BCE) and Current Era(CE) instead of Before Christ(BC) and Anno Domini(AD) to prevent this favouring or pointless usage for the rest of the world. Even though the start of the calendar is still based on an assumed birth of Jesus Christ most of the world doesn’t follow Christianity so having a more neutral system is best. Christians can still say to themselves Before Christ’s Era(BCE) and Christ’s Era(CE), if it makes them feel better.



    As-Salāmu `Alaykum and Wa `Alaykum as-Salaam on the other hand make no religious references. They simply mean "peace be upon you" and "and upon you be peace” in Arabic. Though most often used by Muslims it is spoken by many religious people who speak Arabic and among non-Arabic and non-Muslim speakers.
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  • Reply 27 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    I disagree with this. Christmas, despite parts have pagan roots and the urrent commercial focus, it stll has a very strong tie to the representative birth of Christ, something non-Christians disagree with.



    Before Current Era(BCE) and Current Era(CE) instead of Before Christ(BC) and Anno Domini(AD) to prevent this favouring or pointless usage for the rest of the world. Even though the start of the calendar is still based on an assumed birth of Jesus Christ most of the world doesn?t follow Christianity so having a more neutral system is best. Christians can still say to themselves Before Christ?s Era(BCE) and Christ?s Era(CE), if it makes them feel better.



    As-Salāmu `Alaykum and Wa `Alaykum as-Salaam on the other hand make no religious references. They simply mean "peace be upon you" and "and upon you be peace? in Arabic. Though most often used by Muslims it is spoken by many religious people who speak Arabic and among non-Arabic and non-Muslim speakers.



    Never mind all of that! What really really bothers me is, besides the link here at AppleInsider or MacRumors, I can't find a link to this page ANYWHERE on the Apple US Retail Site. They sure don't want anybody to know about it. Click on the Apple home page... not there, click on the Apple Store... not there. I have tried both in Safari and Firefox. At least with Safari there is a big blank space at the top of the Apple store page where this might have been but I can't see it. Is this only me? I cannot see the light... HELP
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  • Reply 28 of 49
    hudson1hudson1 Posts: 800member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    I disagree with this. Christmas, despite parts have pagan roots and the urrent commercial focus, it stll has a very strong tie to the representative birth of Christ, something non-Christians disagree with.



    Before Current Era(BCE) and Current Era(CE) instead of Before Christ(BC) and Anno Domini(AD) to prevent this favouring or pointless usage for the rest of the world. Even though the start of the calendar is still based on an assumed birth of Jesus Christ most of the world doesn?t follow Christianity so having a more neutral system is best. Christians can still say to themselves Before Christ?s Era(BCE) and Christ?s Era(CE), if it makes them feel better.



    As-Salāmu `Alaykum and Wa `Alaykum as-Salaam on the other hand make no religious references. They simply mean "peace be upon you" and "and upon you be peace? in Arabic. Though most often used by Muslims it is spoken by many religious people who speak Arabic and among non-Arabic and non-Muslim speakers.



    I'm offended by those who say "peace be upon you" yet remain rather ambivalent about crashing planes into buildings.
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  • Reply 29 of 49
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hudson1 View Post


    I'm offended by those who say "peace be upon you" yet remain rather ambivalent about crashing planes into buildings.



    I?m not sure I understand you point. I would, in some sense, be offended by anyone, despite their religious views or their greeting used, if they felt it okay for terrorism to exist. That Arabic phrase crosses many languages and many religions. It?s not fair to append it to an extremest group and deem it evil because of that association.
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  • Reply 30 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    I’m not sure I understand you point. I would, in some sense, be offended by anyone, despite their religious views or their greeting used, if they felt it okay for terrorism to exist. That Arabic phrase crosses many languages and many religions. It’s not fair to append it to an extremest group and deem it evil because of that association.



    I thought the statement was self-explanatory but if it wasn't... I'm offended by hypocrites. A hypocrite in this case is someone who utters the phrase "peace be upon you" yet doesn't seem outraged in the least by the horrific non-peaceful words and actions of those who share the same religion.
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  • Reply 31 of 49
    jeffdmjeffdm Posts: 12,954member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Foo2 View Post


    I wish Apple would offer this in-store-pickup option routinely for web store purchases.



    It does seem odd that the wording suggests that it's only temporarily available.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by blogorant View Post


    I wish Apple would just call it what it is, Christmas. They use a wrapped gift in the piece and note the heavy use of the color red. Gosh, looks like a Christmas themed ad to me. They even went so far as to say "With Reserve and Pick Up, you can make sure the top things on your list are definitely under the tree"



    What tree would that be, Apple?



    Isn't it a Druish tree for celebrating Winter Solstice?



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hudson1 View Post


    I thought the statement was self-explanatory but if it wasn't... I'm offended by hypocrites. A hypocrite in this case is someone who utters the phrase "peace be upon you" yet doesn't seem outraged in the least by the horrific non-peaceful words and actions of those who share the same religion.



    How would you know a lot of them weren't outraged? You're generalizing about a very broad and diverse group.
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  • Reply 32 of 49
    jkgjkg Posts: 3member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by milkmage View Post


    "Christmas" is offensive to a lot of people in this World. I dare you to say "Merry Christmas" to a Muslim.



    Jews aren't real big on the Christmas thing either.



    My company doesn't have a Christmas party, we have a Holiday party.



    Yeah, it's political correctness to the extreme, but why run the risk of offending anyone?



    if you search for Christmas @ amazon or walmart you'll see the only hits you get are for goods (like music) with Christmas in the title.



    It's the tail wagging the dog syndrome and it needs to stop.
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  • Reply 33 of 49
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by JKG View Post


    It's the tail wagging the dog syndrome and it needs to stop.



    What needs to stop? Are you saying huge corporations must be obliged to use the term "Christmas" in their holiday advertising? How do you propose to force them?
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  • Reply 34 of 49
    chris_cachris_ca Posts: 2,543member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    I disagree with this. Christmas, despite parts have pagan roots and the urrent commercial focus, it stll has a very strong tie to the representative birth of Christ, something non-Christians disagree with.



    Still doesn't mean they are offended by it.

    [quote]As-Salāmu `Alaykum and Wa `Alaykum as-Salaam on the other hand make no religious references.[quote]

    It may not make a reference to religion but it is directly related to Islam as the "prescribed" way to greet other muslims.
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  • Reply 35 of 49
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chris_CA View Post


    It may not make a reference to religion but it is directly related to Islam as the "prescribed" way to greet other muslims.



    You can?t see how one is a custom that inherently pushes a religious belief on others and how one is just a custom?
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  • Reply 36 of 49
    chris_cachris_ca Posts: 2,543member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    You can?t see how one is a custom that inherently pushes a religious belief on others and how one is just a custom?



    I don't see how it's pushing any religious belief on anyone.

    If someone were to say "Happy Hanukkah" or "Happy Ramadan" or "Happy Kwanzaa" to me, I wouldn't feel the urge to convert to anything or feel someone was pushing anything me.

    I'd think they are simply being polite and giving customary holiday greetings according to their own beliefs.
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  • Reply 37 of 49
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Chris_CA View Post


    I don't see how it's pushing any religious belief on anyone.

    If someone were to say "Happy Hanukkah" or "Happy Ramadan" or "Happy Kwanzaa" to me, I wouldn't feel the urge to convert to anything or feel someone was pushing anything me.

    I'd think they are simply being polite and giving customary holiday greetings according to their own beliefs.



    One is just a greeting in Arabic that makes no mention of a religious figure, the other is an entire holiday devoted to and comprising of the supposed birth of the central figure of the Christian religion.



    If a company wishes to state Happy Holidays they aren’t leaving out Jews or Christians; they are generalizing to cover the field. I see nothing wrong with that. Why is it only Christians have a problem with businesses not specifically stating Merry Christmas?
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  • Reply 38 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    One is just a greeting in Arabic that makes no mention of a religious figure, the other is an entire holiday devoted to and comprising of the supposed birth of the central figure of the Christian religion.



    If a company wishes to state Happy Holidays they aren?t leaving out Jews or Christians; they are generalizing to cover the field. I see nothing wrong with that. Why is it only Christians have a problem with businesses not specifically stating Merry Christmas?



    If a company were using the term Holidays in in the interest of efficiency or brevity, no problem. Everybody gets it and no one would be offended as traditionally, in the USA, use of the term Holidays was generally understood, depending on the context, to include a chronological combination of one or more of Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Christmas & New Years Eve / Day.



    With the spread of the insidious plague that is political correctness, more and more the use of the term Holidays is being used to replace or avoid Christmas and not in the interest of efficiency or inclusiveness. Apple (and other retailers) isn't pushing a Thanksgiving, New Years or even a Chanukah sale with the use of a wrapped gift icon, the color red or the reference to a tree.



    Regardless of your beliefs New Years Eve / Day, St. Patricks Day, The 4th of July, Ramadan, Thanksgiving, Chanukah & Christmas ALL EXIST and are what they are so let's stop with all the PC silliness. I'm not Irish and I'm not insisting that my local retailers rename their St. Patrick's Day sales. I'm not a Muslim but if Apple were to conduct a Ramadan sale and I needed something, I'm buying, I'm not offended and I'm not converting. In this instance Ramadan exists and Apple chooses to pay respect to its Muslim customers by having a sale event.



    For a Christian believer Christmas is a celebration of the birth Jesus Christ. For others it may be little more than a cultural custom or just another day of the year. The bottom line is that while one can deny the existence and level of significance of Jesus Christ one cannot deny Christmas as a high Holy day for some and just another holiday or day off for others. IT is real and IT exists so lets stop pretending, in the name of political correctness, that IT does not. As a Christian or simply as an individual willing to be intellectually honest with yourself, think about it and you'll see why people might have a problem with the omission of Christmas.
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  • Reply 39 of 49
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by blogorant View Post


    For a Christian believer Christmas is a celebration of the birth Jesus Christ.....



    And yet, it is the christian believers that get so upset when someone substitutes "Holiday" for "Christmas" for their sales.
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  • Reply 40 of 49
    chris_cachris_ca Posts: 2,543member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    If a company wishes to state Happy Holidays they aren?t leaving out Jews or Christians; they are generalizing to cover the field.



    But they are leaving out atheists with no holidays (holy days).

    Happy Holidays specifically goes against their beliefs.

    Quote:

    I see nothing wrong with that. Why is it only Christians have a problem with businesses not specifically stating Merry Christmas?



    25 December is a federal holiday (in the US) for one reason.

    Because it is Christmas.

    It's not a federal holiday beause it's around Kwanzaa or Hannukah or at the end of the year.

    Quote:

    Why is it only Christians have a problem with businesses not specifically stating Merry Christmas?



    Why is it that non-Christians have a problem with Christians, and how Christians chose to celebrate their holidays, especially when it does not affect others (except to give these non-Christians days off and stuff on sale)??

    Why do companies (and others) have a problem with saying "Merry Christmas"?



    I'm not suggesting they should not use "Happy Holidays" at all, but advertisers/companies do go extremely far out of their way to avoid using the word "Christmas", especially when it is painfully obvoious from ads, they do have everything to do with Christmas. (Christmas lights, tree, stockings, wrapping paper, bows, etc.)
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