You really can't say that about the Wii, they have had plenty of time to meet demand.
I'm not suggesting it's sinister, just marketing.
Yeah sure, you can always raise supply to meet demand, but at what quality? People would be whining about that if production were ramped up too much too soon. Supplier quality processes need time adjust to higher volumes.
The "cost of poor quality" can be huge for such a widely hyped product.
"I have an enterprise account and could not get an iPhone for any price," one such buyer tells AppleInsider. "I thought Apple had finally figured out the whole business thing but alas it seems not."
This guy has an enterprise account all the while not understanding microeconomics.
Having a popular product in which you are unable to meet demand does not mean you don't understand "the business thing."
Or they could be saving money on production by using a smaller production facility/ies. There are to many variables as to what is going on with Nintendo to make a clear cut determination, but I see no evidence that are creating a false issue with supply and demand.
Smaller facilities cost more per unit not less. By that logic I can produce the cheapest Wii in my garage by myself. As I said, incompetence or marketing. Your mysterious "many variables" isn't much of an argument versus an ongoing undersupply.
I asked to AT&T to bill my business entity for my phone when I established an account in March '07. That boxes me out of the Apple Store, since business accounts can only be serviced at an AT&T store where I have had nothing but doltish service. I added two phones in June and the resultant mess created within my account took several calls to AT&T totaling well over two hours to fix --all due to sheer stupidity at the AT&T Store.
Buying an iPhone directly from AT&T is like buying a MacBook at Best Buy --an awful experience.
I'm not interested in lines; I'm OK to wait until mine arrives. I can understand making large enterprises transactions go through AT&T directly, but small (micro!) business transactions should be more streamlined and able to be handled at the Apple Store.
My only fear is that the Genius Bar is going to be inundated with people who can't operate their iPhone. I've got a bloated MBP-17 battery to exchange today and I don't want to have to stand around past my appt. time while some "Genius" explains ONE MORE TIME to grandma how to send a text message to a grandkid.
I asked to AT&T to bill my business entity for my phone when I established an account in March '07. That boxes me out of the Apple Store, since business accounts can only be serviced at an AT&T store where I have had nothing but doltish service. I added two phones in June and the resultant mess created within my account took several calls to AT&T totaling well over two hours to fix --all due to sheer stupidity at the AT&T Store.
Buying an iPhone directly from AT&T is like buying a MacBook at Best Buy --an awful experience.
I'm not interested in lines; I'm OK to wait until mine arrives. I can understand making large enterprises transactions go through AT&T directly, but small (micro!) business transactions should be more streamlined and able to be handled at the Apple Store.
My only fear is that the Genius Bar is going to be inundated with people who can't operate their iPhone. I've got a bloated MBP-17 battery to exchange today and I don't want to have to stand around past my appt. time while some "Genius" explains ONE MORE TIME to grandma how to send a text message to a grandkid.
gc
They are trying to get to the Genius Bar appointments on time and from what I've seen they are doing a great job on that front considering. Note: you can't be more than 5 minutes late without losing your slot.
I was 10th in line after they sold out Friday morning. I figured I would just do the direct fulfillment order - the reps told me it would be in by early next week. I got the confirmation e-mail with directions on how to check the order status, but it didn't work. I spent HOURS on the phone with reps who finally located the order, only to tell me that it was back-ordered. I went to the ATT store and it took them 30 minutes to locate the order, but the manager told me it would be in within "the next few days". I called ATT customer service, and they told me - once they located the order, that it would likely be several more weeks. In the meantime, people who were behind me in line were at the store when I was there receiving their phones, and people were walking into the Apple Store in Chicago and walking out with phones right away. I went back to the store and requested the order be cancelled since they weren't able to track it and their automated system was useless. Even though they told me when the order was placed that it couldn't be cancelled, they did cancel it right away. That was the only good part of the whole experience dealing with ATT. If you have access to an Apple Store - choose it every time over the idiots at the ATT store. And I swear - If I hear the scripted response "I do apologize for the inconvenience" one more time...
Going to the online site will tell you that it won't work if it's for a new account. Their tracking system does seem to be defficient, but I don't see the need to track until it's clearly overdue. Given that I got a shipping confirmation, mine is about on time.
I haven't got an issue with the Wii's popularity or quality, it's the suggestion that a company can't meet demand after two years. Either they are holding back stock as a marketing gimmick, or they are incompetent. I'm going for the former. Price wise, a product becomes cheaper to produce as you build more, so building less would mean the price would go up.
The cost to make would also go up if they invest in more facilities only to meet a temporary demand and then close down the extra capacity after a year. If, in the rush to add capacity, they have quality problems, that could add more costs still.
I think at this point, a Wii shortage would have long ago started working more against than for popularity. I doubt keeping customers frustrated for more than a year would be a good thing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by solipsism
They are trying to get to the Genius Bar appointments on time and from what I've seen they are doing a great job on that front considering. Note: you can't be more than 5 minutes late without losing your slot.
Probably case-by-case. I think I was late a bit more than that once or twice, and once I was put in after the person that they bumped to fit my slot.
Yeah sure, you can always raise supply to meet demand, but at what quality? People would be whining about that if production were ramped up too much too soon. Supplier quality processes need time adjust to higher volumes.
The "cost of poor quality" can be huge for such a widely hyped product.
It's electronic equipment. There is a huge industry built around doing just that. And all they're doing is putting a box together, they do massive quantities with chips which require much more finesse. So, for example, the iPhone would have to be dropping in quality with their huge ramp up over the years.
Basically, you have no clue what you're talking about.
The cost to make would also go up if they invest in more facilities only to meet a temporary demand and then close down the extra capacity after a year. If, in the rush to add capacity, they have quality problems, that could add more costs still.
I think at this point, a Wii shortage would have long ago started working more against than for popularity. I doubt keeping customers frustrated for more than a year would be a good thing.
Probably case-by-case. I think I was late a bit more than that once or twice, and once I was put in after the person that they bumped to fit my slot.
But it's been going for two years. It's not about temporary capacity, which is available anyway and not that expensive. Big orders allow you to book contract manufacturers for fixed amounts, it's not like there isn't the scale to support a nice profit.
Chances are they are just about meeting demand but staying a bit short to maintain the unit's mystique, if you will.
They are trying to get to the Genius Bar appointments on time and from what I've seen they are doing a great job on that front considering. Note: you can't be more than 5 minutes late without losing your slot.
5 minutes! Yeah, I know and I was sweating it because the parking lot was full (iPhone line sitters) and finding a space took a while.
My experience today at the Genius Bar was great. They are well insulated from the iPhone mayhem. Business people and people with personal computer problems were being well taken care of. That's good, because well over a year ago, the GB seems swamped with trivial iPod concerns. The Apple Store is so well stocked with people to help you that they make the AT&T store look like a ghost town.
Another ATT is a "BMG" flag. My account is not corporate but apparently had this erroneous code on it, and it prevented me from buying the iphone, after a long long wait on line. This, after calling ATT a few days ago and being told all was fine to upgrade. The ATT rep when I called back today told me this is a known issue and he has gotten dozens of calls about it. He confirmed that my account is not corporate, but said that it would show to Apple as if it was. 15 or 20 apologies later, and I still don't have the phone.
These people are SUCH idiots. Why can't they get it right?
Another ATT is a "BMG" flag. My account is not corporate but apparently had this erroneous code on it, and it prevented me from buying the iphone, after a long long wait on line. This, after calling ATT a few days ago and being told all was fine to upgrade. The ATT rep when I called back today told me this is a known issue...
From what I hear, there is an AT&T rep present in some Apple Stores, though it's not made generally known. If you see iPhone sales people occasionally going to the back of the store to talk to someone who almost looks like a customer, but lingers rather than browses, maybe carries a notepad or spends the entire time fingering a blackberry... there's your AT&T rep.
What does it matter, the new "business" features are barely usable anyway. Push email drains your battery and 3G is rarely any faster than EDGE and gets horrible reception + the 2.0 OS is very sluggish and buggy. It's probably better nobody will able to get one for the next couple weeks, hopefully that will give them enough time to fix all these problems.
When Apple announces its results tomorrow, I hope they'll not also be announcing that they temporarily don't have any iPhones available to sell. That wont be nice.
Comments
You really can't say that about the Wii, they have had plenty of time to meet demand.
I'm not suggesting it's sinister, just marketing.
Yeah sure, you can always raise supply to meet demand, but at what quality? People would be whining about that if production were ramped up too much too soon. Supplier quality processes need time adjust to higher volumes.
The "cost of poor quality" can be huge for such a widely hyped product.
This guy has an enterprise account all the while not understanding microeconomics.
Having a popular product in which you are unable to meet demand does not mean you don't understand "the business thing."
Get real.
Or they could be saving money on production by using a smaller production facility/ies. There are to many variables as to what is going on with Nintendo to make a clear cut determination, but I see no evidence that are creating a false issue with supply and demand.
Smaller facilities cost more per unit not less. By that logic I can produce the cheapest Wii in my garage by myself. As I said, incompetence or marketing. Your mysterious "many variables" isn't much of an argument versus an ongoing undersupply.
Buying an iPhone directly from AT&T is like buying a MacBook at Best Buy --an awful experience.
I'm not interested in lines; I'm OK to wait until mine arrives. I can understand making large enterprises transactions go through AT&T directly, but small (micro!) business transactions should be more streamlined and able to be handled at the Apple Store.
My only fear is that the Genius Bar is going to be inundated with people who can't operate their iPhone. I've got a bloated MBP-17 battery to exchange today and I don't want to have to stand around past my appt. time while some "Genius" explains ONE MORE TIME to grandma how to send a text message to a grandkid.
gc
I was 10th in line after they sold out Friday morning.
...
I spent HOURS on the phone with reps
...
I went to the ATT store and it took them 30 minutes to locate the order
...
I called ATT customer service, and they told me
...
In the meantime, people who were behind me in line
...
and after all that...
I went back to the store and requested the order be cancelled
Why not place the order and wait? It'll come in sometime.
Or don't place an order and wait until you know they have them in stock with no 4 hour lines.
It's obviously not that critical a need or else you would have not cancelled your order.
(not picking on you specifically but your post is typical)
I asked to AT&T to bill my business entity for my phone when I established an account in March '07. That boxes me out of the Apple Store, since business accounts can only be serviced at an AT&T store where I have had nothing but doltish service. I added two phones in June and the resultant mess created within my account took several calls to AT&T totaling well over two hours to fix --all due to sheer stupidity at the AT&T Store.
Buying an iPhone directly from AT&T is like buying a MacBook at Best Buy --an awful experience.
I'm not interested in lines; I'm OK to wait until mine arrives. I can understand making large enterprises transactions go through AT&T directly, but small (micro!) business transactions should be more streamlined and able to be handled at the Apple Store.
My only fear is that the Genius Bar is going to be inundated with people who can't operate their iPhone. I've got a bloated MBP-17 battery to exchange today and I don't want to have to stand around past my appt. time while some "Genius" explains ONE MORE TIME to grandma how to send a text message to a grandkid.
gc
They are trying to get to the Genius Bar appointments on time and from what I've seen they are doing a great job on that front considering. Note: you can't be more than 5 minutes late without losing your slot.
I was 10th in line after they sold out Friday morning. I figured I would just do the direct fulfillment order - the reps told me it would be in by early next week. I got the confirmation e-mail with directions on how to check the order status, but it didn't work. I spent HOURS on the phone with reps who finally located the order, only to tell me that it was back-ordered. I went to the ATT store and it took them 30 minutes to locate the order, but the manager told me it would be in within "the next few days". I called ATT customer service, and they told me - once they located the order, that it would likely be several more weeks. In the meantime, people who were behind me in line were at the store when I was there receiving their phones, and people were walking into the Apple Store in Chicago and walking out with phones right away. I went back to the store and requested the order be cancelled since they weren't able to track it and their automated system was useless. Even though they told me when the order was placed that it couldn't be cancelled, they did cancel it right away. That was the only good part of the whole experience dealing with ATT. If you have access to an Apple Store - choose it every time over the idiots at the ATT store. And I swear - If I hear the scripted response "I do apologize for the inconvenience" one more time...
Going to the online site will tell you that it won't work if it's for a new account. Their tracking system does seem to be defficient, but I don't see the need to track until it's clearly overdue. Given that I got a shipping confirmation, mine is about on time.
I haven't got an issue with the Wii's popularity or quality, it's the suggestion that a company can't meet demand after two years. Either they are holding back stock as a marketing gimmick, or they are incompetent. I'm going for the former. Price wise, a product becomes cheaper to produce as you build more, so building less would mean the price would go up.
The cost to make would also go up if they invest in more facilities only to meet a temporary demand and then close down the extra capacity after a year. If, in the rush to add capacity, they have quality problems, that could add more costs still.
I think at this point, a Wii shortage would have long ago started working more against than for popularity. I doubt keeping customers frustrated for more than a year would be a good thing.
They are trying to get to the Genius Bar appointments on time and from what I've seen they are doing a great job on that front considering. Note: you can't be more than 5 minutes late without losing your slot.
Probably case-by-case. I think I was late a bit more than that once or twice, and once I was put in after the person that they bumped to fit my slot.
Yeah sure, you can always raise supply to meet demand, but at what quality? People would be whining about that if production were ramped up too much too soon. Supplier quality processes need time adjust to higher volumes.
The "cost of poor quality" can be huge for such a widely hyped product.
It's electronic equipment. There is a huge industry built around doing just that. And all they're doing is putting a box together, they do massive quantities with chips which require much more finesse. So, for example, the iPhone would have to be dropping in quality with their huge ramp up over the years.
Basically, you have no clue what you're talking about.
The cost to make would also go up if they invest in more facilities only to meet a temporary demand and then close down the extra capacity after a year. If, in the rush to add capacity, they have quality problems, that could add more costs still.
I think at this point, a Wii shortage would have long ago started working more against than for popularity. I doubt keeping customers frustrated for more than a year would be a good thing.
Probably case-by-case. I think I was late a bit more than that once or twice, and once I was put in after the person that they bumped to fit my slot.
But it's been going for two years. It's not about temporary capacity, which is available anyway and not that expensive. Big orders allow you to book contract manufacturers for fixed amounts, it's not like there isn't the scale to support a nice profit.
Chances are they are just about meeting demand but staying a bit short to maintain the unit's mystique, if you will.
They are trying to get to the Genius Bar appointments on time and from what I've seen they are doing a great job on that front considering. Note: you can't be more than 5 minutes late without losing your slot.
5 minutes! Yeah, I know and I was sweating it because the parking lot was full (iPhone line sitters) and finding a space took a while.
My experience today at the Genius Bar was great. They are well insulated from the iPhone mayhem. Business people and people with personal computer problems were being well taken care of. That's good, because well over a year ago, the GB seems swamped with trivial iPod concerns. The Apple Store is so well stocked with people to help you that they make the AT&T store look like a ghost town.
gc
These people are SUCH idiots. Why can't they get it right?
Another ATT is a "BMG" flag. My account is not corporate but apparently had this erroneous code on it, and it prevented me from buying the iphone, after a long long wait on line. This, after calling ATT a few days ago and being told all was fine to upgrade. The ATT rep when I called back today told me this is a known issue...
From what I hear, there is an AT&T rep present in some Apple Stores, though it's not made generally known. If you see iPhone sales people occasionally going to the back of the store to talk to someone who almost looks like a customer, but lingers rather than browses, maybe carries a notepad or spends the entire time fingering a blackberry... there's your AT&T rep.
gc
11 states have only a single model
05 states have two models
02 states have all three models
13 states have the 8GB model
10 states have the 16Gb white model
03 states have the 16GB black model
Rhode Island's and NY's Fifth Avenue are the only Apple Stores with all three models.
Today (Sunday, 20th July) iPhone availability update:
-AT&T's backlog ship date has gone from 3-5 business days to 21 days. Busier stores have lines for people placing backlog orders.
Apple Retail Status:
188 Stores in the US carried iPhone 3G
As of Sunday, July 20th
-186 of 188 stores are out of 16GB white
(exceptions: Providence Place, RI and Fifth Ave, NYC)
-183 of 188 stores are out of 16GB black
(exceptions:
New York City, Fifth Ave, NY
Salem, Rockingham Park, NH
Bethesda, Montgomery Mall, MD
Chicago, North Michigan Avenue, IL
Orland Park, Orland Square, IL)
179 of 188 stores are out of 8GB
(exceptions:
Tukwila, Southcenter, WA
Providence, Providence Place, RI
Oklahoma City, Penn Square, OK
Las Vegas, Town Square, NV
Leawood, Leawood, KS
Orland Park, Orland Square, OR
Honolulu, Kahala, HI
Lone Tree, Park Meadows, CO
Huntsville, Bridge Street, AL)
No iPhone 3G available at all in the following states:
Arizona
California
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Indiana
Iowa
Kentucky
Louisiana
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Nebraska
New Jersey
New Mexico
North Carolina
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Virginia
Wisconsin
In fact, only 3 stores have more than 1 SKU in stock:
Orland Park, Orland Square, IL
Providence, Providence Place, RI
New York City, Fifth Avenue, NY
I'm not expecting to see my wife's 8 GB iPhone 3G (ordered 16 July from my local AT&T store) until 16 August.
Are they quoting you a month? Every iPhone I've bought from them they are supplying to me in half the time they are quoting.
Are they quoting you a month? Every iPhone I've bought from them they are supplying to me in half the time they are quoting.