Yep. This huge circle jerk of iFans over this nothing announcement.
Do they have a iPad next to a Shuffle? Did they run out of space now? I mean, Shuffle with iPad, Nano with iPad, Classic with iPad, Touch with iPad, Apple TV with iPad, iPad with iPad.....and on. Lots of space to take up.
Is this a green thing? You save paper but how much coal is being burned through out the world to power all of those iPads at all of the stores?
I hope the adjusted the lights above so the glare is not.....glaring
My thoughts on this are that is is brilliant for a few reasons. First, it could reduces the need for as many staff. Next, everyone will be trying out an iPad even if shopping for a MacBook Pro or an iPod Nano and lastly maybe Apple are demonstrating yet another use of an iPad. Perhaps other companies will invest in the custom versions of point of sale iPads. I can see them being used everywhere from museums and exhibitions to POS for just about any item sales staff have problems explaining (Best Buy anyone?).
I guarantee we will see RIM's tablet and Google's Android tablets suddenly appearing doing the exact same thing as those companies 'suddenly' have the exact same idea. I bet Microsoft are up early this morning planning their design for one too.
P.S. Sorry off topic mods ... but I have to share ... I am typing this on my MacBook Pro i7 which is on my lap ... it isn't cooking my legs! In fact it is cool the read out is only 35*C! I installed smcFanControl (Google it) and simply set minimum fan speed to 5000 on both fans and have had a lovely cool MBP ever since. I swear my battery life has increased not decreased! I know I could wear the fans out sooner but I manually switch it off a lot which is very simple to do.
Yeah RIM and Google will follow Apple's lead.......because touch screen displays in retail have never been around.
Yep. And now every customer that uses one those germ transfer stations can delight in knowing any bug that the person that used it before them had is now living on their fingers. Progress indeed.
-kpluck
Are you really that phobic about germs on a glass display? Note that all their other devices are glass covered and touchable, too. Note that in Western culture is customary to shake hands. Also note that not being exposed to germs will prevent you from building up natural immunities.
I'm not upset, it's just staggering that this is even getting coverage. It's not exactly a huge celebration for the average punter is it?
They might have had some sort of promo or an anniversary edition of something, but I guess that wouldn't rake in the profits.....
Sure, but you're a bitter asshole that who literally never posted a single thing that wasn't belittling Apple, Apple's customers or this site, so why should we expect you to think anything else?
Yep. This huge circle jerk of iFans over this nothing announcement.
Do they have a iPad next to a Shuffle? Did they run out of space now? I mean, Shuffle with iPad, Nano with iPad, Classic with iPad, Touch with iPad, Apple TV with iPad, iPad with iPad.....and on. Lots of space to take up.
Is this a green thing? You save paper but how much coal is being burned through out the world to power all of those iPads at all of the stores?
I hope the adjusted the lights above so the glare is not.....glaring
It actually looks best with iPods and iPhones, IMO, as they're cleverly docked right into the iPad's glass fixture.
Well there's the funny thing. I wonder if they ever thought of having the computer itself tell you about itself.
I was wondering the same thing, so I came to the closest Apple Store to look (Baybrook Mall, Webster--Houston, TX).
1. I think the little iPads are a GREAT replacement for the paper displays. I thought I would be a little off put by having to work to find the price and other information (although sparse) on the paper displays). Not so--the iPad's are doing a great job of being interactive and showing intuitive and easily navigable information.
2. The buttons are disabled. Not only that, but peering through the transparent enclosure, the iPads do not have the normal metal backs. No ports, button, sliders, controls, no holes of any kind are visible on the sides of the unit. I didn't pick one up to look at the bottom.
3. Too many wires? Only one small white wire goes to the clear display stand. I didn't look to see where it connects.
4. Mounting flush in the table: I disagree with that idea. I believe too many display unfriendly things would be set on top of the iPad. this way, the potential for setting things on the iPad is greatly reduced. Also, if it was flush in the table, things would be set on it obscuring the display itself and making it much less usable.
I was wondering the same thing, so I came to the closest Apple Store to look.
1. I think the little iPads are a GREAT replacement for the paper displays. I thought I would be a little off put by having to work to find the price and other information (although sparse) on the paper displays). Not so--the iPad's are doing a great job of being interactive and showing intuitive and easily navigable information.
2. The buttons are disabled. Not only that, but peering through the transparent enclosure, the iPads do not have the normal metal backs. No ports, button, sliders, controls, no holes of any kind are visible on the sides of the unit. I didn't pick one up to look at the bottom.
3. Too many wires? Only one small white wire goes to the clear display stand. I didn't look to see where it connects.
4. Mounting flush in the table: I disagree with that idea. I believe too many display unfriendly things would be set on top of the iPad. this way, the potential for setting on the iPad is greatly reduced. Also, if it was flush in the table, things would be set on it obscuring the display itself and making it much less usable.
I'm impressed.
It?s seems like a well executed idea. And to do it for all Apple Stores on the same day right after the 10 year anniversary is a small but nice touch.
I do wonder how these iPads were refurbs and how the OS was altered. It could simply be a standard app that is set to auto-launch on restart (and auto-luanch on crash) with all power saving options disabled. I also wonder if they are connected by the wire or wirelessly to a local or remote server so that each iPad Station can be remotely updated with new info as needed without being removed from their stand.
Yeah RIM and Google will follow Apple's lead.......because touch screen displays in retail have never been around.
I am assuming sarcasm here, if not I apologize and disregard my post. Many successes of Apple have 'been around'. Look at smart phones, tablet computers and MP3 players. Apple just have a way of doing things right and then everyone else catches on. Meanwhile I would like some info on the success stories you have showing touch displays being used in retail like this so as to compare.
I do think the iPad idea is cool, but it also makes me think that something is missing from OSX when you need another computer to explain it.
You think the price of their products should be on the product displays themselves?
I don’t think that’s a good use of the product. I like that they are mostly standard builds with access to the internet and/or filled with media allowing users to full engage with the device.
I also like that they have a call button to get assistance with a built in queue. They could have done this with their Macs, but then customers might hog that Mac waiting for the Apple employee to assist them. This also gets harder for customers to use and understand as you get to the 3.5” products and impossible with their other iPods. It’s simply smarter to use the same product and setup for all stations.
PS: They have(had) some icons in the center console that have changed over the years. At one time you would sign in for your appointment from any Mac but now I think you do that from an employee. I also seem to remember that the app would use the cube effect to flip the screen around. It looked cool but it seemed very off.
The computer can't tell you about itself while you're using it without interfering with its use.
Precisely.
People have had this idea of "the computer telling the customer about itself" since the very dawn of computers. I remember seeing it being tried on a DOS computer in Radio Shack years and years ago. It just doesn't work that well.
The trouble is if the computer is playing some multimedia blah-de-blah about itself, the user can't check out the computer at all. Since people don't generally sit there and read/watch it all it's not very effective as a teaching tool either. One of the great "innovations" of the Apple store is that you can actually play around with the products in the store. Some other stores also do this now but ten years ago when Apple did it, it was "revolutionary."
It turns out to be far more valuable for the users to be able to actually test out the computers, than it is for the computers to be playing some lame multi-media presentation over and over again. Which makes sense if you think about it.
I had never heard of McLean, Virginia. Looking it up on Wikipedia only shows a population just under 40k for th 2000 census. So why was this city chosen as the inaugural Apple Store?
Per Wikipedia, "McLean is home to many diplomats, members of Congress and high-ranking federal government officials, entrepreneurs and service businesses partially attributable to its proximity to Washington, D.C. and the Central Intelligence Agency.?
Here are some screenshoots from the original opening 10 years ago this week.
The first picture appears to be a rather plump Steve Jobs than we?ve come to know in recent years.
Except for the excessive space occupied by boxes for the CD-ROM-based applications the store still looks fairly modern and certainly more classy than other electronic stores.
edit: I had forgotten they?d had some video center in the back of the store and a checkout desk at the front. I much prefer the Genius Bar being along the back instead of along the side at the back and not having the ?register? tablet at the front. I wonder when they changed that? It?s surely been years now.
Wow. Thanks for finding those pics.
I think OS X 10.0 had just shipped that year, and the older inventory of iMacs and iBooks were still preloaded with Mac OS 9. And are those Palm or Handspring PDAs on display in the first pic? The retail biz was a big gamble for Apple, for I recall that they wanted to control the shopping experience and the message, rather than leave it in the hands of anti-Apple kids working at, say, CompUSA.
People have had this idea of "the computer telling the customer about itself" since the very dawn of computers. I remember seeing it being tried on a DOS computer in Radio Shack years and years ago. It just doesn't work that well.
The trouble is if the computer is playing some multimedia blah-de-blah about itself, the user can't check out the computer at all. Since people don't generally sit there and read/watch it all it's not very effective as a teaching tool either. One of the great "innovations" of the Apple store is that you can actually play around with the products in the store. Some other stores also do this now but ten years ago when Apple did it, it was "revolutionary."
It turns out to be far more valuable for the users to be able to actually test out the computers, than it is for the computers to be playing some lame multi-media presentation over and over again. Which makes sense if you think about it.
And if the computer sold itself to the customer, it would take all of the commission for the sale
But seriously, letting people play with the computers rather than lock it down with some kind of demo video (as some retailers like to do) is very important to buying decisions, which is why Apple's retail demo machines are preloaded with a lot of software and even same files so you can, say, play around with Aperture or iMovie or Garageband. It reminds me of the "Test Drive a Mac" program from 84, although all you could do with it back then was MacWrite and MacPaint.
Seems like overkill but of course Apple don't have to pay retail for their iPads!
There is a such thing as opportunity cost.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kpluck
Yep. And now every customer that uses one those germ transfer stations can delight in knowing any bug that the person that used it before them had is now living on their fingers. Progress indeed.
Sucks for people that don't have immune systems, but even those people can wipe it with disinfectant and they're good.
I think OS X 10.0 had just shipped that year, and the older inventory of iMacs and iBooks were still preloaded with Mac OS 9. And are those Palm or Handspring PDAs on display in the first pic? The retail biz was a big gamble for Apple, for I recall that they wanted to control the shopping experience and the message, rather than leave it in the hands of anti-Apple kids working at, say, CompUSA.
I?m hoping Dilger will have some nice multi-page article for us detailing the history of the Apple Stores and how they?ve changed over the past decade. If anyone can pull off a detailed historical piece about Apple?s retail stores it?s him.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffDM
Sucks for people that don't have immune systems, but even those people can wipe it with disinfectant and they're good.
An compared to previous CE with a lot of little crevices in buttons for germs to hide. Or how about talking face to face with some stranger exchanging germs.
Maybe we should all just buy online. Oh wait, didn?t Bird Flu originate in China where their products are made?
The capital region is known for it's very high rate of college graduates (and advanced degree holders) and income levels. So forget "McLean" and think Northern Virginia or US Capital Region.
More than that, Northern Virginia has a high concentration of technology companies - it's been called Silicon Valley East. At one time when driving down the Dulles Toll road (out to the airport) the signs in the buildings read like a tech who's who. It's subsided a little, but there is still a large concentration of companies here. And like silicon valley/San Fran has a major Internet node, MAE-East is here too.
edit: I had forgotten they?d had some video center in the back of the store and a checkout desk at the front. I much prefer the Genius Bar being along the back instead of along the side at the back and not having the ?register? tablet at the front. I wonder when they changed that? It?s surely been years now.
They changed it about a year ago. I rather liked the theater setup in the back- they regularly gave classes back there that were pretty good.
Since the remodel, the amount of retail space is smaller and they don't seem to have as mush stuff. It used to be one of the offer and more unique Applw stores, now it's just like the rest of them
Just got back from the Apple Story at Legacy Village in Beachwood (Cleveland, OH). They have the new 2.0 look as well. Every item (including iPad 2s) have iPads next to them with the information on hand. Every store iPad is in landscape mode, glued down to one of the arcylic disks and attached with a cable to a hidden dock, or something below the screen. The home buttons indeed do nothing. They have also added more acrylic blocks to the various tables with each product line in large letters. But one thing was for sure: it was one of the joyfully noisiest stores I have ever been in. Yes they have a ton of employees in the blue shirts walking around (very happily asking if I needed anything several times), and TONS of customers. It was as if they were giving stuff away. I have been in this store several times, but this was a new level of buzz. Way to go Apple!
Comments
What a total fucking non-event.
Yep. This huge circle jerk of iFans over this nothing announcement.
Do they have a iPad next to a Shuffle? Did they run out of space now? I mean, Shuffle with iPad, Nano with iPad, Classic with iPad, Touch with iPad, Apple TV with iPad, iPad with iPad.....and on. Lots of space to take up.
Is this a green thing? You save paper but how much coal is being burned through out the world to power all of those iPads at all of the stores?
I hope the adjusted the lights above so the glare is not.....glaring
My thoughts on this are that is is brilliant for a few reasons. First, it could reduces the need for as many staff. Next, everyone will be trying out an iPad even if shopping for a MacBook Pro or an iPod Nano and lastly maybe Apple are demonstrating yet another use of an iPad. Perhaps other companies will invest in the custom versions of point of sale iPads. I can see them being used everywhere from museums and exhibitions to POS for just about any item sales staff have problems explaining (Best Buy anyone?).
I guarantee we will see RIM's tablet and Google's Android tablets suddenly appearing doing the exact same thing as those companies 'suddenly' have the exact same idea. I bet Microsoft are up early this morning planning their design for one too.
P.S. Sorry off topic mods ... but I have to share ... I am typing this on my MacBook Pro i7 which is on my lap ... it isn't cooking my legs! In fact it is cool the read out is only 35*C! I installed smcFanControl (Google it) and simply set minimum fan speed to 5000 on both fans and have had a lovely cool MBP ever since. I swear my battery life has increased not decreased! I know I could wear the fans out sooner but I manually switch it off a lot which is very simple to do.
Yeah RIM and Google will follow Apple's lead.......because touch screen displays in retail have never been around.
Yep. And now every customer that uses one those germ transfer stations can delight in knowing any bug that the person that used it before them had is now living on their fingers. Progress indeed.
-kpluck
Are you really that phobic about germs on a glass display? Note that all their other devices are glass covered and touchable, too. Note that in Western culture is customary to shake hands. Also note that not being exposed to germs will prevent you from building up natural immunities.
Here is a fun video...
I'm not upset, it's just staggering that this is even getting coverage. It's not exactly a huge celebration for the average punter is it?
They might have had some sort of promo or an anniversary edition of something, but I guess that wouldn't rake in the profits.....
Sure, but you're a bitter asshole that who literally never posted a single thing that wasn't belittling Apple, Apple's customers or this site, so why should we expect you to think anything else?
Yep. This huge circle jerk of iFans over this nothing announcement.
Do they have a iPad next to a Shuffle? Did they run out of space now? I mean, Shuffle with iPad, Nano with iPad, Classic with iPad, Touch with iPad, Apple TV with iPad, iPad with iPad.....and on. Lots of space to take up.
Is this a green thing? You save paper but how much coal is being burned through out the world to power all of those iPads at all of the stores?
I hope the adjusted the lights above so the glare is not.....glaring
It actually looks best with iPods and iPhones, IMO, as they're cleverly docked right into the iPad's glass fixture.
http://www.macstories.net/news/apple...re/#more-23142
Well there's the funny thing. I wonder if they ever thought of having the computer itself tell you about itself.
I was wondering the same thing, so I came to the closest Apple Store to look (Baybrook Mall, Webster--Houston, TX).
1. I think the little iPads are a GREAT replacement for the paper displays. I thought I would be a little off put by having to work to find the price and other information (although sparse) on the paper displays). Not so--the iPad's are doing a great job of being interactive and showing intuitive and easily navigable information.
2. The buttons are disabled. Not only that, but peering through the transparent enclosure, the iPads do not have the normal metal backs. No ports, button, sliders, controls, no holes of any kind are visible on the sides of the unit. I didn't pick one up to look at the bottom.
3. Too many wires? Only one small white wire goes to the clear display stand. I didn't look to see where it connects.
4. Mounting flush in the table: I disagree with that idea. I believe too many display unfriendly things would be set on top of the iPad. this way, the potential for setting things on the iPad is greatly reduced. Also, if it was flush in the table, things would be set on it obscuring the display itself and making it much less usable.
I'm impressed.
I'm writing this on a display MacBook Pro 15".
I was wondering the same thing, so I came to the closest Apple Store to look.
1. I think the little iPads are a GREAT replacement for the paper displays. I thought I would be a little off put by having to work to find the price and other information (although sparse) on the paper displays). Not so--the iPad's are doing a great job of being interactive and showing intuitive and easily navigable information.
2. The buttons are disabled. Not only that, but peering through the transparent enclosure, the iPads do not have the normal metal backs. No ports, button, sliders, controls, no holes of any kind are visible on the sides of the unit. I didn't pick one up to look at the bottom.
3. Too many wires? Only one small white wire goes to the clear display stand. I didn't look to see where it connects.
4. Mounting flush in the table: I disagree with that idea. I believe too many display unfriendly things would be set on top of the iPad. this way, the potential for setting on the iPad is greatly reduced. Also, if it was flush in the table, things would be set on it obscuring the display itself and making it much less usable.
I'm impressed.
It?s seems like a well executed idea. And to do it for all Apple Stores on the same day right after the 10 year anniversary is a small but nice touch.
I do wonder how these iPads were refurbs and how the OS was altered. It could simply be a standard app that is set to auto-launch on restart (and auto-luanch on crash) with all power saving options disabled. I also wonder if they are connected by the wire or wirelessly to a local or remote server so that each iPad Station can be remotely updated with new info as needed without being removed from their stand.
The computer can't tell you about itself while you're using it without interfering with its use.
Sure it can. It's all in the windows and if-then-else, etc - "we have the technology".
And it's a worthwhile exercise anyway because computers should be better at teaching users how they work while being used after purchase.
I do think the iPad idea is cool, but it also makes me think that something is missing from OSX when you need another computer to explain it.
Yep. This huge circle jerk of iFans over this nothing announcement.
---
It's more of a conversation. There's no jerking involved.
Yeah RIM and Google will follow Apple's lead.......because touch screen displays in retail have never been around.
I am assuming sarcasm here, if not I apologize and disregard my post. Many successes of Apple have 'been around'. Look at smart phones, tablet computers and MP3 players. Apple just have a way of doing things right and then everyone else catches on. Meanwhile I would like some info on the success stories you have showing touch displays being used in retail like this so as to compare.
I do think the iPad idea is cool, but it also makes me think that something is missing from OSX when you need another computer to explain it.
You think the price of their products should be on the product displays themselves?
I don’t think that’s a good use of the product. I like that they are mostly standard builds with access to the internet and/or filled with media allowing users to full engage with the device.
I also like that they have a call button to get assistance with a built in queue. They could have done this with their Macs, but then customers might hog that Mac waiting for the Apple employee to assist them. This also gets harder for customers to use and understand as you get to the 3.5” products and impossible with their other iPods. It’s simply smarter to use the same product and setup for all stations.
PS: They have(had) some icons in the center console that have changed over the years. At one time you would sign in for your appointment from any Mac but now I think you do that from an employee. I also seem to remember that the app would use the cube effect to flip the screen around. It looked cool but it seemed very off.
Sure it can. It's all in the windows and if-then-else, etc - "we have the technology".
And it's a worthwhile exercise anyway because computers should be better at teaching users how they work while being used after purchase.
I do think the iPad idea is cool, but it also makes me think that something is missing from OSX when you need another computer to explain it.
What if they had a little paper clip character pop up with useful information now and then, that wouldn't get in the way too much... oh, wait...
The computer can't tell you about itself while you're using it without interfering with its use.
Precisely.
People have had this idea of "the computer telling the customer about itself" since the very dawn of computers. I remember seeing it being tried on a DOS computer in Radio Shack years and years ago. It just doesn't work that well.
The trouble is if the computer is playing some multimedia blah-de-blah about itself, the user can't check out the computer at all. Since people don't generally sit there and read/watch it all it's not very effective as a teaching tool either. One of the great "innovations" of the Apple store is that you can actually play around with the products in the store. Some other stores also do this now but ten years ago when Apple did it, it was "revolutionary."
It turns out to be far more valuable for the users to be able to actually test out the computers, than it is for the computers to be playing some lame multi-media presentation over and over again. Which makes sense if you think about it.
I had never heard of McLean, Virginia. Looking it up on Wikipedia only shows a population just under 40k for th 2000 census. So why was this city chosen as the inaugural Apple Store?
Per Wikipedia, "McLean is home to many diplomats, members of Congress and high-ranking federal government officials, entrepreneurs and service businesses partially attributable to its proximity to Washington, D.C. and the Central Intelligence Agency.? Here are some screenshoots from the original opening 10 years ago this week.The first picture appears to be a rather plump Steve Jobs than we?ve come to know in recent years.
Except for the excessive space occupied by boxes for the CD-ROM-based applications the store still looks fairly modern and certainly more classy than other electronic stores.
edit: I had forgotten they?d had some video center in the back of the store and a checkout desk at the front. I much prefer the Genius Bar being along the back instead of along the side at the back and not having the ?register? tablet at the front. I wonder when they changed that? It?s surely been years now.
Wow. Thanks for finding those pics.
I think OS X 10.0 had just shipped that year, and the older inventory of iMacs and iBooks were still preloaded with Mac OS 9. And are those Palm or Handspring PDAs on display in the first pic? The retail biz was a big gamble for Apple, for I recall that they wanted to control the shopping experience and the message, rather than leave it in the hands of anti-Apple kids working at, say, CompUSA.
Precisely.
People have had this idea of "the computer telling the customer about itself" since the very dawn of computers. I remember seeing it being tried on a DOS computer in Radio Shack years and years ago. It just doesn't work that well.
The trouble is if the computer is playing some multimedia blah-de-blah about itself, the user can't check out the computer at all. Since people don't generally sit there and read/watch it all it's not very effective as a teaching tool either. One of the great "innovations" of the Apple store is that you can actually play around with the products in the store. Some other stores also do this now but ten years ago when Apple did it, it was "revolutionary."
It turns out to be far more valuable for the users to be able to actually test out the computers, than it is for the computers to be playing some lame multi-media presentation over and over again. Which makes sense if you think about it.
And if the computer sold itself to the customer, it would take all of the commission for the sale
But seriously, letting people play with the computers rather than lock it down with some kind of demo video (as some retailers like to do) is very important to buying decisions, which is why Apple's retail demo machines are preloaded with a lot of software and even same files so you can, say, play around with Aperture or iMovie or Garageband. It reminds me of the "Test Drive a Mac" program from 84, although all you could do with it back then was MacWrite and MacPaint.
Seems like overkill but of course Apple don't have to pay retail for their iPads!
There is a such thing as opportunity cost.
Yep. And now every customer that uses one those germ transfer stations can delight in knowing any bug that the person that used it before them had is now living on their fingers. Progress indeed.
Sucks for people that don't have immune systems, but even those people can wipe it with disinfectant and they're good.
Wow. Thanks for finding those pics.
I think OS X 10.0 had just shipped that year, and the older inventory of iMacs and iBooks were still preloaded with Mac OS 9. And are those Palm or Handspring PDAs on display in the first pic? The retail biz was a big gamble for Apple, for I recall that they wanted to control the shopping experience and the message, rather than leave it in the hands of anti-Apple kids working at, say, CompUSA.
I?m hoping Dilger will have some nice multi-page article for us detailing the history of the Apple Stores and how they?ve changed over the past decade. If anyone can pull off a detailed historical piece about Apple?s retail stores it?s him.
Sucks for people that don't have immune systems, but even those people can wipe it with disinfectant and they're good.
An compared to previous CE with a lot of little crevices in buttons for germs to hide. Or how about talking face to face with some stranger exchanging germs.
Maybe we should all just buy online. Oh wait, didn?t Bird Flu originate in China where their products are made?
The capital region is known for it's very high rate of college graduates (and advanced degree holders) and income levels. So forget "McLean" and think Northern Virginia or US Capital Region.
More than that, Northern Virginia has a high concentration of technology companies - it's been called Silicon Valley East. At one time when driving down the Dulles Toll road (out to the airport) the signs in the buildings read like a tech who's who. It's subsided a little, but there is still a large concentration of companies here. And like silicon valley/San Fran has a major Internet node, MAE-East is here too.
edit: I had forgotten they?d had some video center in the back of the store and a checkout desk at the front. I much prefer the Genius Bar being along the back instead of along the side at the back and not having the ?register? tablet at the front. I wonder when they changed that? It?s surely been years now.
They changed it about a year ago. I rather liked the theater setup in the back- they regularly gave classes back there that were pretty good.
Since the remodel, the amount of retail space is smaller and they don't seem to have as mush stuff. It used to be one of the offer and more unique Applw stores, now it's just like the rest of them