Wal-Mart to Sell iPhone Starting Sunday

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/12/26/wal-mart-to-sell-iphone-starting-sunday/)


http://images.macrumors.com/article/2008/12/26/123354-walmartad.jpg

Image from SkippyThorson (http://skippythorson.blogspot.com/2008/12/ad-pictures-3g.html)
Wal-Mart officially announced (http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20081226/ap_on_hi_te/wal_mart_iphone) that the company will start selling Apple's iPhone on Sunday, December 28th. The news confirms multiple reports (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/12/08/99-wal-mart-iphone-seems-unlikely/) about the impending sale. The report also confirms that rumors of a $99 Wal-Mart iPhone were incorrect.

Wal-Mart will sell the iPhone for only $2 less than the regular price with a two-year contract: $197 for the 8 GB model, or $297 for the 16GB model.

Article Link: Wal-Mart to Sell iPhone Starting Sunday (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/12/26/wal-mart-to-sell-iphone-starting-sunday/)

[Sedulous]

Is there some sort of advantage to buy it at Walmart?

I would imagine this will certainly kill the aura of "exclusivity"

[anubis]

Ahh, $2 off. Big deal :rolleyes:

[months]

Yea you save TWO dollars! WOW!


*AND the salespeople won't know what they are talking about!

[ArtOfWarfare]

Wow, that's some crazy price slashing.

It's a whole 1% off if you buy it from Wal-Mart. Except not really because you have to pay just as much for the plan so it's closer to .1% off.

Same thing they did with the iPod Touch though. (Seriously, I thought Wal-Mart was supposed to have the best prices. They aren't even close with the iPods... Amazon tends to offer far better discounts than Wal-Mart.)

[gkarris]

The $99 will be for the iPhone Nano - hence AT&T not caring that Wal-Mart is selling the more expensive one... :eek:

[m1stake]

*AND the salespeople won't know what they are talking about!

Just like the Apple store!

[skellener]

Why would you willingly give money to WalMart?

[iPoodOverZune]

Wow! What a Discount!! :p

[Max E Verde]

I wouldn't recommend buying it from Walmart unless you live nowhere near an Apple Store, AT&T store, or Best Buy. Like already said, the associates will know jack squat about the phone.

I do see how this could add to the iPhone market share, though. If someone is already shopping at Walmart, which more people do than Walmart deserves, they might find it while looking at other items and end up buying it.

Here's where you should buy an iPhone. Only go to the next one if the one above it isn't near you.

1. Apple Store - They know all about the iPhone, inside and out. 90% of the people here USE iPhones as their normal phone. They know about the plans too, though not as much as AT&T.

2. AT&T - They know all about the service, but not much about the iPhone.

3. Best Buy - They have a whole department dedicated to cell phones, with associates only trained to sell cell phones. Still, they have such a large selection of cell phones that they won't know too much about the iPhone

4. Walmart - Last resort

[iParis]

Yea you save TWO dollars! WOW!


*AND the salespeople won't know what they are talking about!

AMEN TO THAT.

Wal Mart Sales associates never have any idea what they're talking about.

[fendol]

Finally half of the rumor is confirmed, iPhones are going to be sold on Wal-Mart at $197... for $2 less than their original price. Groundbreaking... :D:apple:http://www.seoagora.com/img/589/d08l1104oulu/smiley2.gifhttp://www.seoagora.com/img/459/k08q1024glza/ecstatic.gifhttp://www.seoagora.com/img/1261/v08t1201sxfb/cheers.gif

[jaw04005]

I actually like Wal-Mart. It's by far the cheapest place to purchase groceries (particularly boxed and canned goods) here. I don't buy produce or meat there (prefer my local guys), but for everything else it's great.

I suppose you could spend the extra 30 percent at other stores like Kroger, but why pay more for the same products? :rolleyes:

And the "slave labor" comment is out of line. The people that work at Wal-Mart choose to work there. I worked there for about a year in high school, and they paid quite a bit above what others were offering for the same type of employment. Not to mention, I received regular raises (every 60-90 days) and a yearly $2000+ profit-sharing "bonus."

That's not bad for a 16 year-old. I suspect that the majority of people that look down at discounters like Wal-Mart either have too much money or are just jumping on the "I hate" bandwagon. Everyone hates a winner (just look at the sheer amount of Microsoft bashing on this Web site).

[Takeo]

With regards to the "discount"... it's probably more about having a Walmart style price than anything else (i.e... they don't have any prices with 99 in them).

[rockosmodurnlif]

Does Walmart sell any other Apple products? Not iPods. I mean computers.

[bobbleheadbob]

Ahh, $2 off. Big deal :rolleyes:

It is a big deal when you consider the additional distribution channel Wal-Mart represents. Like it or not, many more people shop at Wal-Mart than the ATT or Apple stores.

[mac*jedi*g]

Maybe it just the accessories you can save on. :confused: Nothing like that ol'
iPhone beer can attachment. :o

[retrac]

I actually like Wal-Mart. It's by far the cheapest place to purchase groceries (particularly boxed and canned goods) here. I don't buy produce or meat there (prefer my local guys), but for everything else it's great.

I suppose you could spend the extra 30 percent at other stores like Kroger, but why pay more for the same products? :rolleyes:

And the "slave labor" comment is out of line. The people that work at Wal-Mart choose to work there. I worked there for about a year in high school, and they paid quite a bit above what others were offering for the same type of employment. Not to mention, I received regular raises (every 60-90 days) and a yearly $2000+ profit-sharing "bonus."

That's not bad for a 16 year-old. I suspect that the majority of people that look down at discounters like Wal-Mart either have too much money or are just jumping on the "I hate" bandwagon. Everyone hates a winner (just look at the sheer amount of Microsoft bashing on this Web site).

Exactly! You said it better than I could've :D

Does Walmart sell any other Apple products? Not iPods. I mean computers.

No, they only sell iPods and (now) iPhones. :apple:

[andreab35]

Yep... Walmart.

I gave my Dad an iPod Touch for Christmas since he loved my iPhone.
But since he is going to be doing his consulting business, he needs a cellphone. So, I told him, "Dad, instead, you can get an iPhone."
He got excited and agreed.

So tomorrow, we are going to get an iPhone 3G. He actually wants my old iPhone really bad.

He noticed that Walmart will be selling the iPhone. But, we're going to the Apple Store to get everything settled. For some reason, going to the Apple Store is a more pleasurable experience... and it's like going to the candy store for me.

Walmart... I don't know... I don't feel it's a big deal. It makes me feel like I'm going there to buy a $20 flip phone. :rolleyes:

[retrac]

It is a big deal when you consider the additional distribution channel Wal-Mart represents. Like it or not, many more people shop at Wal-Mart than the ATT or Apple stores.

Right, you have to intentionally want a phone to go to an Apple or AT&T stores (though I'm sure most MR people do go there just to look :D). Having it at a big distribution channel like WalMart allows people to just come across it. WalMart is hit or miss as far a phones go, if you go at a good time you can get a REALLY good deal on a phone (they were offering the LG Chocolate free LONG before other stores, including Verizon, did). Other times, such as with the iPhone, the savings are negligible.

But lets face it, not everyone lives near an Apple or AT&T store. Apple made a smart move here by making it more accessible to people who Apple would not be able to reach. A lot more economical than building a whole new slew of Apple Stores :D

[hexonxonx]

But lets face it, not everyone lives near an Apple or AT&T store. Apple made a smart move here by making it more accessible to people who Apple would not be able to reach. A lot more economical than building a whole new slew of Apple Stores :D

True. I am just 3 miles away from 3 Walmarts. 28 miles away from the nearest Apple store and 30 miles away from 4 other Apple stores.

[Small White Car]

Right, you have to intentionally want a phone to go to an Apple or AT&T stores (though I'm sure most MR people do go there just to look :D). Having it at a big distribution channel like WalMart allows people to just come across it.

Exactly. I can easily name a dozen people I know who have never been in an AT&T store or an Apple store.

Having the phones in Best Buy and Wal Mart are critical if they want to reach huge sales numbers.

[bryan1884]

The $99 will be for the iPhone Nano - hence AT&T not caring that Wal-Mart is selling the more expensive one... :eek:

Why would att care who sells it as long as they are getting contracts?

[2strokedude]

I actually like Wal-Mart. It's by far the cheapest place to purchase groceries (particularly boxed and canned goods) here. I don't buy produce or meat there (prefer my local guys), but for everything else it's great.

I suppose you could spend the extra 30 percent at other stores like Kroger, but why pay more for the same products? :rolleyes:

And the "slave labor" comment is out of line. The people that work at Wal-Mart choose to work there. I worked there for about a year in high school, and they paid quite a bit above what others were offering for the same type of employment. Not to mention, I received regular raises (every 60-90 days) and a yearly $2000+ profit-sharing "bonus."

That's not bad for a 16 year-old. I suspect that the majority of people that look down at discounters like Wal-Mart either have too much money or are just jumping on the "I hate" bandwagon. Everyone hates a winner (just look at the sheer amount of Microsoft bashing on this Web site).


Dude the "slave labor" comment wasn't directed at the people who work at Wall Marts.

How do you think they can sell their merchandise at such low prices?

Rent the movie "Wall Mart The high cost of low prices"

I will never spend a penny at a Wall Mart. They are an evil corporation, like most big corporations.
We all need to educate ourselves about big corporations, especially big retail corporations.
For the longest time GM was our nations largest employer. Now one guess who it is now........ Wall Mart.

[2strokedude]

Wal-Mart is the world’s largest retailer. It is the largest corporation and private employer in the United States.
Wal-Mart is the biggest employer in 25 states. They set the standard for wages and labor practices.
Wal-Mart employs 1.4 million workers worldwide and over 1 million in the United States. More than half of Wal-Mart’s U.S. employees leave the company each year.
Wal-Mart has more than 3,000 stores in the US and almost 1,300 International operations.
The Walton family is worth about $102 billion.
Wal-Mart topped the Fortune 500 list of America's largest corporations ranked by sales for the fourth year in a row.
Wal-Mart is the top U.S. seller of products ranging from dog food to diamonds with sales of $244.5 billion in the fiscal year ended January 2003 up from $220 billion in 2001.
In 1970, the country's largest employer was General Motors, with 350,000 workers. Overwhelmingly union, they earned $17.50 an hour plus health, pension and vacation benefits and cost-of-living increases. Today, the country's largest employer is Wal-Mart, with over 1 million US workers. They earn an average hourly wage of $8.00, with no defined benefit pension, and inadequate health care.
Wal-Mart was sued 4,851 times in 2000––or about once every 2 hours, every day of the year. Wal-Mart lawyers list about 9,400 open cases,” according to a report published in the August 14, 2001, USA Today newspaper.
Wal-Mart plans to open only 15 to 20 of the traditional food-and-drug combo stores in 2003, down from previous projections of 20 to 25 outlets. It will open 210 supercenters, the high end of its previous development range for that format.

[xbjllb]

Thank the stars!! Now Apple doesn't have to be bothered with those pesky troublesome cutting-edge desktop computers anymore nor that "bag of hurt" blu-ray.

Now everyone in this crashing and burning economy will run right out and buy a brand new iCrap, oops, sorry, meant iPhone.

Hey... at Wal-Mart prices, maybe even two or three.

(Provided they're labeled in Spanish.)

"Uno, dos, tres, catorce..." :rolleyes:

:apple:

[dacreativeguy]

Is there some sort of advantage to buy it at Walmart?



There is if you live in a red state that Apple won't set foot in, but which has a Super-sized Walmart in every town.

[ProwlingTiger]

Dude the "slave labor" comment wasn't directed at the people who work at Wall Marts.

How do you think they can sell their merchandise at such low prices?

Rent the movie "Wall Mart The high cost of low prices"

I will never spend a penny at a Wall Mart. They are an evil corporation, like most big corporations.
We all need to educate ourselves about big corporations, especially big retail corporations.
For the longest time GM was our nations largest employer. Now one guess who it is now........ Wall Mart.
You know, if you had only misspelled Wal-Mart once during that, I would have ignored it, but the fact that you're touting the "Wal-Mart is evil" mantra and can't even spell the name grinds my gears.

I don't think this thread should be about whether Wal-Mart is evil or not. Cluttering MacRumors won't help the problem. Wal-Mart won't be browsing MR and go, "Hey a few members on here hate us! Let's clean our act up."

The point is, the iPhone is at Wal-Mart. My view on this is bittersweet.
1. I feel it almost cheapens the image of Apple. But then I keep forgetting the iPod which Wal-Mart sells, so I guess I could discount this one.

2. Apple needs to become more widespread. They can't build Apple Stores in every place that needs Mac infiltration. So it's logical that they partner with a retailer as large as Wal-Mart. Even Bestbuy isn't as widespread as Mac requires to achieve more market dominance. Just start with the iPod, then the iPhone....

[IndyGopher]

Dude the "slave labor" comment wasn't directed at the people who work at Wall Marts.

How do you think they can sell their merchandise at such low prices?

Rent the movie "Wall Mart The high cost of low prices"

I will never spend a penny at a Wall Mart. They are an evil corporation, like most big corporations.
We all need to educate ourselves about big corporations, especially big retail corporations.
For the longest time GM was our nations largest employer. Now one guess who it is now........ Wall Mart.

Which of those companies is bankrupt?

[Johnner1999]

yeah this really does suck!

I bet this is why AT&T last week decided to allow in home activations again...


BUT


from a business point of view...

- many more wal-mart stores; so by pure math alone more iPhones will be sold

- if in home activations are required - maybe a good chunk of these shoppers don't have iTunes installed? and this might get addational iTune buyers as well

- apple now has a whole new line of shoppers for both hardware and software.


and well if Apple can't grow and make money the investment comunity will leave which could make Apple be no more (yeah I know one extreame to an other)


BUT

at the end of the day I really wish I was still in a private group of Mac users :D

[MacFan782040]

I would take this to mean that there will be no significant upgrade to the iPhone at Macworld. I mean, why would Walmart begin selling this iPhone if a new one was to be in stores, say, February?

Based on this, I would predict them to only announce a 32gb model or a software upgrade that may add some missing features.

What do you think?

[irun5k]

How do you think they can sell their merchandise at such low prices?

For the longest time GM was our nations largest employer. Now one guess who it is now........ Wall Mart.

So the iPhones sold everywhere EXCEPT WalMart are made by $100/hr Union labor in the American mid west?

And yes, GM was our largest employer. Now look. The idea of $40/hr jobs for people who move a piece of metal from one side of the room to another is great. And as we've seen, it is perfectly sustainable in the long term!

[mergedown]

This why Walmart is carrying a product like the Iphone...

Every week, 138 million shoppers visit Wal-Mart's 4750 stores

Now thats the kind of exposure any company selling a product would want. Even Apple!!

[Marx55]

APPLE, what is needed is an iPhone with:

- NO CONTRACT.
- UNLOCKED.

Until then, no iPhone.

[2strokedude]

Sorry for the misspelling of Wal-Mart. Luckily where I live in Santa Monica they would never allow them to build one. Even near me in South Central L.A.
the people that live there voted against them building one there. Even they get it enough to know about what the store is really about.
When you have all 5 of the living members of the Walton family in the top ten richest people in America, you know something is wrong.
Number 4-8 all Waltons

Helen #4
S Robson #5
John T #6
Jim C #7
Alice L #8
http://www.forbes.com/2002/09/13/rich400land.html

[Tallest Skil]

APPLE, what is needed is an iPhone with:

- NO CONTRACT.
- UNLOCKED.

Until then, no iPhone.

Okay. Feel free to pay upwards of $500 for such a device (and then your contract on whichever GSM provider thereafter) should it exist.

[Prof.]

ZOMGZ!!!11!1!111!!!1ONE!!11!1!ONEONEONE

Two whole dollars!?!?! I'm sooooo buying an iPhone now!:D:D:D



:rolleyes:

[Johnner1999]

I would take this to mean that there will be no significant upgrade to the iPhone at Macworld. I mean, why would Walmart begin selling this iPhone if a new one was to be in stores, say, February?

Based on this, I would predict them to only announce a 32gb model or a software upgrade that may add some missing features.

What do you think?


either that or Apple is using Wal-Mart to move old phones at $99 after the show?


yeah I know its stretch BUT hey this is macRumors ;-)

[coolfactor]

Are there Wal-Marts in countries outside of North America?

Here in Canada, I don't see any evidence of Wal-Marts planning to sell iPhones. Please indicate in the article that this is US only, if that's the case.

[mozadek]

If the fan boys are getting their panties in a bunch then wal-mart selling iPhones cant be that bad of an idea. One benefit of buying an iPhone at wal-mart is that you wont be surrounded by people who think they are cooler than everyone else because they are buying an iPhone.

[Tallest Skil]

If the fan boys are getting their panties in a bunch then wal-mart selling iPhones cant be that bad of an idea. One benefit of buying an iPhone at wal-mart is that you wont be surrounded by people who think they are cooler than everyone else because they are buying an iPhone.

No, you'll be surrounded by people who resent you for "being cooler" than they are for being "rich enough" to buy an iPhone.

And absolutely brain-dead sales associates who will tell you that the iPhone can do everything from the lists (from here) of things it can't do.

[mozadek]

Are there Wal-Marts in countries outside of North America?

Here in Canada, I don't see any evidence of Wal-Marts planning to sell iPhones. Please indicate in the article that this is US only, if that's the case.

There are wal-marts in China, I remember reading an article about the only wal-mart in Germany closing because the people didn't shop there because they didn't want there to be a wal-mart.

[xDYLANx]

If you live in a city that doesn't have an Apple store or Best Buy. This is semi-helpful. being as that I live in a town with 3G but no Apple store or Best Buy, this is cool. BUT all cities also have AT&T stores anyway, so once again...pointless for cities like the one I live in.

[coolfactor]

...I suspect that the majority of people that look down at discounters like Wal-Mart either have too much money or are just jumping on the "I hate" bandwagon. Everyone hates a winner (just look at the sheer amount of Microsoft bashing on this Web site).

There's a very significant negative impact on a community's local economy when a Wal-Mart moves into town. The majority of consumers eat it up, even some of those that said they would never step foot inside a Wal-Mart. But the fact remains that the overall quality of life is reduced, and amount of junk introduced into the world is increased. Sure, some may argue that it saves them money, but over the longer period, they end up spending more because they have to replace the junk they bought, or they end up buying stuff they don't really need because it's "such a great deal". The only one laughing at the end of the day is Wal-Mart and their profit-sharing employees. The community as a whole must now figure out how to deal with the unstoppable cancer.

[lostngone]

This is so ridiculous, why doesn't Apple let Apple Authorized Resellers sell the iPhone.

Come on, First BestBuy and now Walmart.

[Slim02]

Yea, like Walmart Clients (I'm no better/richer) will be able to afford a $200 phone at $100/month service... :eek:


The last time I looked the plains started at $59.99 a month not $100.. So I guess your statement make you look like a fool?...

[HLdan]

Wow, I am so disappointed in this thread so far (in terms of the posters). The main reason why Mac users are said to be uppity is largely due to the responses on this thread against Wal-mart.
Some of you think you're too damn good to shop at Wal-mart when Wal-mart is just another store that MANY of "US" (people who care about their money) shop at for our personal needs.

From a business standpoint any entrepreneur would love their product to be sold at a major retail chain. It requires less advertisement because of the exposure.

From a customer standpoint, it makes it much easier to buy from Wal-mart since many people live near it vs. an AT&T or an Apple store. There are still MANY people that don't even know AT&T sells an iPhone and there are still MANY people that don't even know the iPhone is made by Apple.

Exposure is key and it works for everyone, so some of need here need to stop acting like you're too good to shop at Wal-mart or too good to eat at Mc Donald's. :p

[ProwlingTiger]

Wal-Mart is an example of capitalism, they're not running a charity. You cant get more American than capitalism.

Righto. Wal-Mart is merely a strong American company out to make money, like all other business and succeeding and doing so. It was ol' Sam's American dream. I hope the iPhone will share in their success.

[iBLAKEE]

My walmart has had there display up for 2 weeks, there just aren't any demo phones on it yet.

[mozadek]

Wow, I am so disappointed in this thread so far (in terms of the posters). The main reason why Mac users are said to be uppity is largely due to the responses on this thread against Wal-mart.
Some of you think you're too damn good to shop at Wal-mart when Wal-mart is just another store that MANY of "US" (people who care about their money) shop at for our personal needs.

From a business standpoint any entrepreneur would love their product to be sold at a major retail chain. It requires less advertisement because of the exposure.

From a customer standpoint, it makes it much easier to buy from Wal-mart since many people live near it vs. an AT&T or an Apple store. There are still MANY people that don't even know AT&T sells an iPhone and there are still MANY people that don't even know the iPhone is made by Apple.

Exposure is key and it works for everyone, so some of need here need to stop acting like you're too good to shop at Wal-mart or too good to eat at Mc Donald's. :p

Thank you, you come off as a level headed mac user, unlike some of the elitist fan boys here.

[ProwlingTiger]

Thank you, you come off as a level headed mac user, unlike some of the elitist fan boys here.

You know, if Wal-Mart didn't sell those Dells.... :D jking

[irun5k]

Sorry for the misspelling of Wal-Mart. Luckily where I live in Santa Monica they would never allow them to build one. Even near me in South Central L.A.
the people that live there voted against them building one there. Even they get it enough to know about what the store is really about.
When you have all 5 of the living members of the Walton family in the top ten richest people in America, you know something is wrong.
Number 4-8 all Waltons

Helen #4
S Robson #5
John T #6
Jim C #7
Alice L #8
http://www.forbes.com/2002/09/13/rich400land.html

Dunno. Does everyone working at Wal-Mart have jobs? Is the company profitable? Does the stock hold value for the shareholders? (many of which are middle class Americans invested in the stock either directly or through a 401K/Mutual Fund/etc. for retirement purposes.) I'd say they're doing something right, and they're being financially rewarded for it. I have no problem with that. Who the heck SHOULD be the richest Americans? The CEO of a failed bank? George W. Bush? Bill Clinton? Michael Vick?

I'm very curious where you shop and what you buy. For example, what brand of deodorant do you use, and where do you buy it? Do you own an iPod or any Apple hardware? Where were they made? Have you done an in-depth analysis of every item you consume, and a complete analysis of the places you buy these things? i.e. who owns and operates the stores you shop at? Do you ever eat at resturants? If so, which ones? Who owns it? Have you toured the kitchen to observe working conditions? Do you know where the restaurant gets its food?

None of those are rhetorical questions. If you're going to imply how great of a person you are and how moral your community is, I think we need to see if it is for real, or if you are just picking on Wal-Mart because it is the fashionable thing to do.

[Ugg]

This is obviously good news for those who don't live near an Apple store.

However, I'm puzzled that Apple is willing to let their brand be diminished by selling the iPhone there.

Best Buy isn't exactly top of the line, but at least they're all about electronics.

walmart seems to be attempting to go upscale and must have lobbied Apple extensively to be able to sell the iPhone.

I would love to know what went on behind the scenes of this misalliance.

[THX1139]

It is a big deal when you consider the additional distribution channel Wal-Mart represents. Like it or not, many more people shop at Wal-Mart than the ATT or Apple stores.

Yeah, but the people who shop at Walmart are NOT the demographic that supports Apple products because they can't afford them. Have you ever been to a Walmart and noticed the people pushing their carts around? If not, go do that and come back here and explain how you think they will be able to afford the monthly service fees. Most of the people who go to Walmart so they can buy cheap crap. If they need a phone they are going for the pay-as-you-go type deal because that's all they can afford. Especially since they are only giving a measly 2 bucks off.

[pagansoul]

I shop at Walmart at least twice a week. I rent and return at the Redbox in the store. I sometimes see a DVD movie worth having in the $5 bin. I like cooked turkey legs and Rubbermaid products.

[jdovejr]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPod; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F137 Safari/525.20)

this is to put the iPhones in front of the masses on a daily basis.

This will triple apples sales.



Impulse buy is now in play for the iPhone.

[sflocal]

There are wal-marts in China, I remember reading an article about the only wal-mart in Germany closing because the people didn't shop there because they didn't want there to be a wal-mart.

I lived in Germany off and on over the years and there is a Walmart in Rosenheim that I visited rarely and only for absolute last-minute emergencies. Most the of townspeople hated that store yet I found it interesting that the store always had a lot of customers in it. The store is still there.

What got Walmart in hot water in Germany IMHO is that they tried to rewrite the employee rules by extending store hours and trying to cut back employee vacations and benefits to model that in the U.S.

German employees start with six weeks of paid vacation in addition to quite a few holidays. It's a government thing and not subject to negotiation. After 6:00pm, they close down like all businesses do there so that all the workers can be with their families.

What a concept eh?

One can understand why Walmart would be upset.

I personally think the iPhone at Walmart (as an AAPL owner) is a good idea due to the market penetration. However, I personally avoid entering a Walmart store unless I have no other option of using a more local store. What they were trying to do in Germany and after watching the movie "Walmart - The high cost of low prices" cemented my belief about that corporation.

just my 2 cents.

[macthetiger85]

Finally half of the rumor is confirmed, iPhones are going to be sold on Wal-Mart at $197... for $2 less than their original price. Groundbreaking... :D:apple:http://www.seoagora.com/img/589/d08l1104oulu/smiley2.gifhttp://www.seoagora.com/img/459/k08q1024glza/ecstatic.gifhttp://www.seoagora.com/img/1261/v08t1201sxfb/cheers.gif

The other half of the rumor:

January 5th - Phil Schiller: Introducing 32GB iPhone for 299, and 16Gb for 199 -the rest of the 8Gb for 99.

[kas23]

I just LOVE all these righteous comments about how Walmart will bring down the Good Apple name and how Apple is too good for Walmart and their customers.

Hello? The frickin fart apps are dominating the App Store right now! Selling the phone at Walmart was only the most appropriate next step by Apple. Some people around here have to get off their high-horse and realize Apple's just trying to make more money (surprise, surprise).

[mozadek]

I lived in Germany off and on over the years and there is a Walmart in Rosenheim that I visited rarely and only for absolute last-minute emergencies. Most the of townspeople hated that store yet I found it interesting that the store always had a lot of customers in it. The store is still there.

What got Walmart in hot water in Germany IMHO is that they tried to rewrite the employee rules by extending store hours and trying to cut back employee vacations and benefits to model that in the U.S.

German employees start with six weeks of paid vacation in addition to quite a few holidays. It's a government thing and not subject to negotiation. After 6:00pm, they close down like all businesses do there so that all the workers can be with their families.

What a concept eh?

One can understand why Walmart would be upset.

I personally think the iPhone at Walmart (as an AAPL owner) is a good idea due to the market penetration. However, I personally avoid entering a Walmart store unless I have no other option of using a more local store. What they were trying to do in Germany and after watching the movie "Walmart - The high cost of low prices" cemented my belief about that corporation.

just my 2 cents.


wow, six weeks of paid vacation? Nice, closing at 6 seems a little early but I forgot stores close up early in Europe. Wal-Mart was wrong to try to close later because when you're in another country you have to adjust to their customs, not the other way around. Here is a nice article about wal-mart's failure in Germany.

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2112746,00.html

[hexonxonx]

And unlike mom n' pops, they are the #1 supplier of cheap, affordable goods to the lower-class.

And multi-millionaires. They shop there too.

[Educ8r]

One stop shopping! I can guarantee you whoever walks into Wal-Mart to buy the iPhone will leave with MORE than the iPhone, can't really say that about the Apple store or AT&T. What I can say is that customer service is horrible at all THREE! :D

[dextertangocci]

I hated Wal-Mart ever since I saw that Family guy episode about it :D

[Sehnsucht]

I wouldn't recommend buying it from Walmart unless you live nowhere near an Apple Store, AT&T store, or Best Buy. Like already said, the associates will know jack squat about the phone.

AHEM...Walmart associate here...I know everything there is to know about the iPhone and then some. :D Several other associates here already have iPhones and love them. I took the iPhone training test for associates a couple of weeks ago and passed with 95% accuracy. Although I'm fairly certain that our Connection Center associates know how to use an iPhone, it's the customers I worry about. :D The ones who aren't immediately scared away by the $199 price tag have asked me some pretty...um...interesting questions about it. You should have seen this guy's eyes glaze over when I explained the technical reasons behind not being able to jailbreak the iPhone for use on Verizon's network. I explained that the iPhone is a GSM/EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA phone, which uses a SIM card, whereas Verizon's network is CMDA 1xEVDO, and doesn't use a SIM card.

The guy just stared. :D :D :D :D

[Johnner1999]

This is obviously good news for those who don't live near an Apple store.

However, I'm puzzled that Apple is willing to let their brand be diminished by selling the iPhone there.

Best Buy isn't exactly top of the line, but at least they're all about electronics.

walmart seems to be attempting to go upscale and must have lobbied Apple extensively to be able to sell the iPhone.

I would love to know what went on behind the scenes of this misalliance.



hey here is another wishfull idea....


.... Maybe AT&T wanted the iPhone in more stores for more mindshare?


Apple (steve) laughed and said sure but lets end our contract so we can sell to other carriers?


yeah again I doubt it




side note - I have no issues with Wal-Mart hell I shop at one at least once a week.

[Educ8r]

You're kidding right? I shop at Wal Mart on occasion and if they sold MacBooks and iMacs I'd probably buy them there to avoid the pretentious ***holes at the Apple store.

Count me as part of the demographic who shops at Wal-Mart but also include me as a supporter of Apple products since I own an iMac, MacBook Pro, iPhone and 2 Apple TV's.


Yeah, but the people who shop at Walmart are NOT the demographic that supports Apple products because they can't afford them. Have you ever been to a Walmart and noticed the people pushing their carts around? If not, go do that and come back here and explain how you think they will be able to afford the monthly service fees. Most of the people who go to Walmart so they can buy cheap crap. If they need a phone they are going for the pay-as-you-go type deal because that's all they can afford. Especially since they are only giving a measly 2 bucks off.

[ziggyonice]

Almost four years ago, Apple started selling the iPod mini at Wal-Mart (http://www.macrumors.com/2005/02/01/wal-mart-selling-ipod-minis/) and people were upset, saying things like:

..."wow, if thats true, i just lost a lot of respect for apple."

The same happened when Wal-Mart started selling the lower priced iPod shuffles (http://www.macrumors.com/2005/01/29/walmart-to-sell-ipod-shuffle/):

A deal with the devil. Everyone knows you can't buy anything "cool" at Walmart. I don't think this is good news.

And now here we are again, this time being presented with our beloved iPhone. Will I lose my respect for Apple? Will Wal-Mart degrade the iPhone image?

Last I checked, Wal-Mart probably helped Apple much more than it ever hurt them. The quality of Apple products is a reflection of Apple -- people know they're purchasing a good phone (or iPod, for that matter), regardless of where it is bought.

So the question for you, Apple fans everywhere, is this: Are you willing to sacrifice the "cool" factor of carrying around an iPhone, just as you sacrificed the same "cool" factor four years ago with the iPod? Are you willing to give it up so that we may see our favorite company do even better and produce even better products in the future?

For me, it all comes back to the Mac. Whatever will expose more people to the Apple brand will come back to the Mac.


I'm sure the Wal-Mart deal is good for Apple. More sales, more halo effect, and ultimately, a good thing for the Mac platform.
As quoted... four years ago.

[Thorm]

Certainly cheaper, must be the iPhone Nano
:rolleyes:

[DeepDish]

Some people don't live close to an ATT store or an Apple store.

Some people who have never been to an Apple store or an ATT store might pass by the iPhone display in Wal-mart and be curious.

The more eyes that get a chance to see an iPhone on display and have an opportunity to touch one, the better.

There are NO advantages to buying an iPhone at Wal-mart, but there are huge advantages to Apple to have all those people pass by the iPhone display.

Not everybody lives in a big city or on one of the coast.

[iOrlando]

an iphone is an iphone...doesnt matter where you buy it from....as long as its a real apple product..its all good.


walmart is a perfect place to buy toothpaste, toothbrushes, cotton balls, etc... i guess now an iphone too. Although it just feels cooler buying it from an apple store....

[bluefido]

Is there some sort of advantage to buy it at Walmart?

I would imagine this will certainly kill the aura of "exclusivity"

What a snobbish quote. The advantage is clear. More stores may equal much more marketshare. However, I imagine the elitist side of Apple fans will rear its ugly head on this forum. Lately, I'm almost embarrassed to own a Mac because of diehard Apple fans.

[Lynxpoint]

it is almost too funny to watch the wal-mart discussion.

I agree with those that see wal-mart as a poster child for what has gone wrong in the modern world - aka consumerism above all, with no thought to its impact.

I was not going to say anything until I saw the post saying the person wanted quality in some things like electronics, and low prices on things like food.

This is where I start to feel ill. Your health is the most important thing. Of all things one demands quality in, number one should be food, in my view.

As for apple products in wal-mart, i agree with those saying it will increase apple's exposure and thus potentially increase sales - sales being the number one thing any company cares about. Image is important, but only important in regards to the sales it generates. Thus is the way of the consumption driven society, something wal-mart has become a master of.

[Glideslope]

Some people don't live close to an ATT store or an Apple store.

Some people who have never been to an Apple store or an ATT store might pass by the iPhone display in Wal-mart and be curious.

The more eyes that get a chance to see an iPhone on display and have an opportunity to touch one, the better.

There are NO advantages to buying an iPhone at Wal-mart, but there are huge advantages to Apple to have all those people pass by the iPhone display.

Not everybody lives in a big city or on one of the coast.

Which is exactly what is going on. Smart move to + market share IMO.
BTW child labor in China starts at 10 not 8.

Will have 0 impact on Apple Stores/at&t stores. I'd also say the "exclusivity" thing is a little overated these days. :apple:

[macjiro]

According to 9to5mac, you can get a refurb from AT&T with free shipping for $99
http://9to5mac.com/99-dollar-iphone-att

Thats a good deal. How much is it a month with AT&T for 2yrs?

[D1G1T4L]

Low prices mean they are of poor quality. PCs are cheap but are of low quality, you have to continually replace them. So in the long run it's better off buying a super reliable Mac instead. Similarly, you and America are better off not buying at cheap garbage from Wal-Mart.

Since Wal-Mart sells only cheap garbage for the average joe, everyone will associate Apple with cheap garbage. And I want to think and be different, by not being associated with the average joe. That's what Apple is all about.



Apple is a privilege. You should be proud of owning an Apple product. If you are embarrassed then you no longer deserve to be in the Apple community.

How is the box of cereal I buy at Wal-Mart any less quality than the box I buy at another store?

[internetmachine]

How is the box of cereal I buy at Wal-Mart any less quality than the box I buy at another store?

Inferior ingredients. In the non Wal-Mart store you will get the same cereal that is fresher , crispier and lasts longer.

[McPaul]

Interesting to see the hate-on for Wal-Mart in this thread. I was a Human Resources Manager for two WM Canada stores here for the last couple of years.

I certainly don't think anyone that regularly reads at MacRumors needs a Wal-Mart employee to tell them anything about the phone. However, we had been developing some pretty innovative ideas for training associates in the last couple of years, ie. electronics associates had training available on MP3 players so that as the associate walked the mods, they would get information on each product. The information on this training would definitely be appropriate for the average WM customer. Were there issues on excecution and followup with this program? Yes. some employees wouldn't listen/take seriously/retain the information, and some managers didn't care/properly follow up. But the program was solid.

What Apple and ATT/Rogers gain with WM as a partner is distribution. There are so many people that come through WM doors each day, and although they might be shopping for something else that particular day, they might stop for one if their current contract happens to be running out. This provides a huge market for Apple.

I see a lot of comments about wages at WM. WM comp strategy is to be at the 50th percentile for wages within their market. They don't compete in the same market as Calgary Oil & Gas, they don't even compete in the same market as many other retail stores like Kroger, or Safeway, or the Bay. Their market is other low price focussed and/or small department stores that are also non-unionized. KMart. Target. Zellers. Dollar Stores. Mom & Pop shops. And yes, within this market they execute this strategy effectively.

The reason I can't do this anymore (one of the reasons, anyways) was that in my stores, I had a few genuinely good people who worked hard, cared for others, put their minds into the job and gave great customer service, who I thought (and encouraged) could go on to do bigger and better things in either other fields, or in other, higher paying jobs. What killed me was that these people didn't want to try. They didn't want to make the change. WM was good enough for them and they were genuinely frightened of leaving their group of friends at work, or leaving their familiar procedures and trying something new. Hell, for the last few years, Calgary was the hottest job market in North America! It wasn't for lack of opportunity or lack of higher paying jobs, so to answer earlier comments.... yes, the associates DO choose to work there, and it is not in ANY of our places to criticize either them or the company for them doing so.


Someone mentioned that millionaires shop there. While I am not aware of their net worth, I did have the pleasure of meeting many well off people that shopped there while working the floor. Face it. The box of Diamond Shreddies (I love that product :) ) you buy at WM is the same as the box of Diamond Shreddies you purchase anywhere else. I used to be of the same opinion. I would never set foot in a WM store. The person who headhunted me had to do some serious convincing for me to even think of coming on board, because if I didn't shop at WM, I sure as hell wasn't going to work there. Now, I do shop at WM. For basic non-perishable food they are almost always significantly cheaper than the Safeway across the street. But other than basic non perishables (there is no supercenter near me) paper towels, zip lock containers, Tide, Sunlight, scrounges, Pantene, Dove, and Blu Rays/video games, I don't feel the need to go there. But that's my decision. For those that either can't afford/aren't aware/don't value higher quality products out there for other departments, WM does just fine.

[miketcool]

How terrible, the precious iPhone is sold at Walmart. Clearly evil for being too successful.

Thank Gaia too!

While AT&T makes underhanded deals with the Government to illegally monitor all of my phone conversations, I'll be whining about economics because I heard someone spout off some unbacked information about EVIL CORPORATIONS.

I will be that hypocrite that owns two iPhones, and won't share any of my wealth because I feel the Waltons need to share theirs. Why? Because they were too good at business and deserve to bend to my stupid thought process. Sure I don't understand simple supply/demand relationships; but I will judge everyone who works at, or shops at Walmart as ignorant and unworthy of my pretentious controlling lifestyle. Lets even go a step further and polarize this into a sudden political battleground because I couldn't get enough of the last presidential campaigns.

Why all this effort?

Because I heard someone passionately say things that I never bothered to research correctly myself. And if you don't like it, I will just continue to repeat and confuse the argument until you give up or get a gun. They sell guns at Walmart, right? Good, that means my side is obviously better. I am better, you lose.

[wakka092]

Not everyone can jump in their car and drive around the block to Whole Foods or an Apple Store.

I live in a small town with a Walmart. I predominately shop there. Sure, there are a few other stores in my town, but they cannot come to match the availability of products, including groceries, food, and electronics. And I'm not poor. Far from it. At this Walmart, the people there are willing to help and are courteous. This is obviously very variable, but Walmart is just another American corporation like Apple.

See what third-party retailers did for the iPod? The iPhone is next.

And to those who say that Walmart's full of Chinese crap.. Have you ever read anything on an Apple box? :)

[McPaul]

Inferior ingredients. In the non Wal-Mart store you will get the same cereal that is fresher , crispier and lasts longer.

I understand your concern. Let me shed some light on it for you. I have been through Supply Chain Management here in Calgary. This is WM's largest distribution center in western Canada. Although WM is SCM's largest client, it is definitely not it's only client. When product comes in from the Kellogg's plant, it goes to a certain spot in the 210,000 sqft warehouse. When orders get picked, they get taken from that exact spot. The product WM gets is the same thing anyone else gets.

Sorry to burst your elitist bubble. Next?

[Slim02]

How terrible, the precious iPhone is sold at Walmart. Clearly evil for being too successful.

Thank Gaia too!

While AT&T makes underhanded deals with the Government to illegally monitor all of my phone conversations, I'll be whining about economics because I heard someone spout off some unbacked information about EVIL CORPORATIONS.

I will be that hypocrite that owns two iPhones, and won't share any of my wealth because I feel the Waltons need to share theirs. Why? Because they were too good at business and deserve to bend to my stupid thought process. Sure I don't understand simple supply/demand relationships; but I will judge everyone who works at, or shops at Walmart as ignorant and unworthy of my pretentious controlling lifestyle. Lets even go a step further and polarize this into a sudden political battleground because I couldn't get enough of the last presidential campaigns.

Why all this effort?

Because I heard someone passionately say things that I never bothered to research correctly myself. And if you don't like it, I will just continue to repeat and confuse the argument until you give up or get a gun. They sell guns at Walmart, right? Good, that means my side is obviously better. I am better, you lose.

The only one that is losing is you, because you are the one that is ignorant with your stupid posted.. I think you are confuse yourself then others... But keep making a fool out of yourself and looking total ignorant and stupid at the same time...

[winterspan]

I actually like Wal-Mart. It's by far the cheapest place to purchase groceries (particularly boxed and canned goods) here. I don't buy produce or meat there (prefer my local guys), but for everything else it's great.

I suppose you could spend the extra 30 percent at other stores like Kroger, but why pay more for the same products? :rolleyes:

And the "slave labor" comment is out of line. The people that work at Wal-Mart choose to work there. I worked there for about a year in high school, and they paid quite a bit above what others were offering for the same type of employment. Not to mention, I received regular raises (every 60-90 days) and a yearly $2000+ profit-sharing "bonus."

That's not bad for a 16 year-old. I suspect that the majority of people that look down at discounters like Wal-Mart either have too much money or are just jumping on the "I hate" bandwagon. Everyone hates a winner (just look at the sheer amount of Microsoft bashing on this Web site).


It has nothing to do with "hating a winner". Although Walmart has participated in certain shady employment activities, their negative affects on the labor and retail markets go far beyond their own store employees. Because Walmart has consolidated so much of the market, they not only destroy small businesses who cannot compete with their volume, they also have huge influence on manufacturers and distributors which are forced to cut costs wherever possible in order to survive from the razor thin margins. You may love saving a few dollars on cans of tuna, but don't think it doesn't have a cost to society. While the popularity of Walmart is certainly not the only force, this cheap-at-any-cost-or-quality mentality is exactly what has driven manufacturing, assembly, and distribution out of America and into cheap labor markets like China, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Mexico, Honduras, etc. I'd like to think that many people would rather purchase more expensive goods if they knew both the quality was higher and that their purchases were not supporting the outsourcing of America ---- particularly building up the economy of a nefarious communist country that actively supports genocide and other human rights violations..

[ziggyonice]

Inferior ingredients. In the non Wal-Mart store you will get the same cereal that is fresher , crispier and lasts longer.

Kellogg's Corn Flakes is sent from Distribution Center (DC) to Retailers.

DC ----shipping to----> Wal-Mart
DC ----shipping to----> Non Wal-Mart

Amount of time during transport is equal.

How is my box of Kellogg's Corn Flakes from "non Wal-Mart" any better than the one I pick up from Wal-Mart???

[McPaul]

It has nothing to do with "hating a winner". Although Walmart has participated in certain shady employment activities, their negative affects on the labor and retail markets go far beyond their own store employees. Because Walmart has consolidated so much of the market, they not only destroy small businesses who cannot compete with their volume, they also have huge influence on manufacturers and distributors which are forced to cut costs wherever possible in order to survive from the razor thin margins. You may love saving a few dollars on cans of tuna, but don't think it doesn't have a cost to society. While the popularity of Walmart is certainly not the only force, this cheap-at-any-cost-or-quality mentality is exactly what has driven manufacturing, assembly, and distribution out of America and into cheap labor markets like China, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Mexico, Honduras, etc. I'd like to think that many people would rather purchase more expensive goods if they knew both the quality was higher and that their purchases were not supporting the outsourcing of America...


Outsourcing of America/Canada/Western World? Please. This is a worldwide trend that thousands of companies are embibing in to save money and be competitive in the new World. WM is no more guilty here than Apple itself.

[Analog Kid]

Glad I'm not the only one amused by the $2 savings. You know they worked so hard to negotiate their supplier down, too.

Ahhh, Walmart... Cutting prices as low as possible, and devastating regional employment so people need them to be. Have to admit that the business plan has a certain elegance to it.

[lanervoza]

1. There is a film previously mentioned that will elucidate points as to why you should not shop at walmart. While some of it is a little personal-drama hokey, there is some pretty egregious

2. people who own apple products have just as much right to want to maintain the image as those who don't have apple product to want the right to have that image. Don't pretend the apple is an everyman company.

3. While it's true that many companies go through terribly shady business practices, some are far worse than others (walmart) and chances are if you don't care, you're probably supporting many of the others without thinking about it. And if you do care, minimizing the support of damaging companies is always beneficial. Buy less, buy better.

4. elitism is not intrinsically a problem. What it is, generally, is actually a population being more proactive about their actions. if there is something offensive being done (spending money on inexpensive items produced immorally), of course those who can avoid it will not want to be associated with it. The egalitarian principle is just plain faulty and you shouldn't attempt to reconcile it. Not everyone is the same.

[EricNau]

I wonder if Walmart is making any profit on their iPhone sales. If not, what's the incentive for them to go through the hassle? Perhaps they're just hoping to capitalize on the accessory sales likely to accompany the purchase of an iPhone.

[McPaul]

Glad I'm not the only one amused by the $2 savings. You know they worked so hard to negotiate their supplier down, too.

Ahhh, Walmart... Cutting prices as low as possible, and devastating regional employment so people need them to be. Have to admit that the business plan has a certain elegance to it.


I know you're trying to be funny, but this is not effective.

Sam Walton's "business plan" allowed him to go from one store in 1964 to 7,608 stores in December 2008. Let me restate that for you. "Over SEVEN THOUSAND" stores.

His business plan allowed him to go from nearly losing his SHIRT when he was working under the Ben Franklin franchise in 1962 to the Walton family having a total net worth of over $100B in 2008. 5 of the members of the Walton family INDIVIDUALLY are each ranked 4th on Forbes' World's Richest People list.


I'd say that's a pretty good business plan.

[Analog Kid]

I will be that hypocrite that owns two iPhones, and won't share any of my wealth because I feel the Waltons need to share theirs. Why? Because they were too good at business and deserve to bend to my stupid thought process. Sure I don't understand simple supply/demand relationships; but I will judge everyone who works at, or shops at Walmart as ignorant and unworthy of my pretentious controlling lifestyle. Lets even go a step further and polarize this into a sudden political battleground because I couldn't get enough of the last presidential campaigns.

No, I'll judge everyone who shops at Wallmart and complains about the decline of American manufacturing, the decline of customer service, the decline of social mobility, the lack of jobs for anyone with less than a college education, the quality of Chinese manufactured goods, the inability to establish a strong foreign policy regarding injustices in Asia, and... shall I go on? It's not that I've got anything against Wallmart, I've just got issues with people who shop there and then complain about how the world is changing.
LMAO... I guess you are as ignorant and stupid as we all knew... Because the best you could come up with was about poor grammar..

I did not know this was a school classroom where good grammar was a most..

LMAO...
Just a newbie too... Banned before even becoming a regular. Such a shame, such a shame...

[McPaul]

1. There is a film previously mentioned that will elucidate points as to why you should not shop at walmart. While some of it is a little personal-drama hokey, there is some pretty egregious

2. people who own apple products have just as much right to want to maintain the image as those who don't have apple product to want the right to have that image. Don't pretend the apple is an everyman company.

3. While it's true that many companies go through terribly shady business practices, some are far worse than others (walmart) and chances are if you don't care, you're probably supporting many of the others without thinking about it. And if you do care, minimizing the support of damaging companies is always beneficial. Buy less, buy better.

4. elitism is not intrinsically a problem. What it is, generally, is actually a population being more proactive about their actions. if there is something offensive being done (spending money on inexpensive items produced immorally), of course those who can avoid it will not want to be associated with it. The egalitarian principle is just plain faulty and you shouldn't attempt to reconcile it. Not everyone is the same.


Oooohhhh... There's a lot of meat here! Lets start with this:

1. You are correct. There is a film out there. Actually that film is part of a MUCH LARGER marketing campaign aimed at being anti-WM. If you do a little bit of research, you will see that this campaign is put on by an organization that wants to unionize WM. This organization is in turn funded by the largest union in North America. They want to raise public opinion (and thus WM employee opinion) that WM is the root of all evil. Now WHY would a union want to portray WM as evil? Well, unions collect union dues from their members, a fee for their "representation". WM currently employs about 4 MILLION employees worldwide. Can you even BEGIN to imagine the amount of MONEY the unionization of WM would bring in to this union? Where do you think this organization's philosophies REALLY put the individual WM employee that they so forcefully say they are campaigning for when they are making BILLIONS of dollars annually off of WM employees? Is the unionization of WM REALLY in the best interests of individual WM employees? Think of that next time you see Garth Brooks singing about employee wages at WM, or "the high cost of low prices" or any of the other films, tv specials, infomercials, news stories, or likewise any other public communication from this group.

[Analog Kid]

I know you're trying to be funny, but this is not effective.

Sam Walton's "business plan" allowed him to go from one store in 1964 to 7,608 stores in December 2008. Let me restate that for you. "Over SEVEN THOUSAND" stores.

His business plan allowed him to go from nearly losing his SHIRT when he was working under the Ben Franklin franchise in 1962 to the Walton family having a total net worth of over $100B in 2008. 5 of the members of the Walton family INDIVIDUALLY are each ranked 4th on Forbes' World's Richest People list.

I'd say that's a pretty good business plan.
Sorry, you misread my tone... I don't find anything funny about Wallmart.

Their business plan is brilliant-- I really do believe that. And, aside from a few labor issues here than there, and the occasional discrimination issue, I believe what they're doing is perfectly legit. I also believe that it's completely gutting the country's economy and is leading us to ruin.

It's amazing to me what the average American is willing to sacrifice to save a nickel on peanut butter.

I also give the Walton family tremendous credit for converting that cultural tendency into great personal wealth. I don't consider that an indicator of personal merit, but I do agree it shows they had a working business plan.

[ddTaylor]

There are wal-marts in China, I remember reading an article about the only wal-mart in Germany closing because the people didn't shop there because they didn't want there to be a wal-mart.

But when I was in Germany they had an Aldi - that is the Walmart of Europe.

So - it is a distinction without a difference.

D

[McPaul]

No, I'll judge everyone who shops at Wallmart and complains about the decline of American manufacturing, the decline of customer service, the decline of social mobility, the lack of jobs for anyone with less than a college education, the quality of Chinese manufactured goods, the inability to establish a strong foreign policy regarding injustices in Asia, and... shall I go on? It's not that I've got anything against Wallmart, I've just got issues with people who shop there and then complain about how the world is changing.

Just a newbie too... Banned before even becoming a regular. Such a shame, such a shame...


That same toy that you see people buying at WM which is made in China, Thailand, or worse is actually sold in KMart, sold in Target, sold in mom & pop shops, sold online, sold at Toys R Us, sold at...... so while you so vociferously are blaming WM, you might as well blame alllll these other companies too.

Ohh... and that same zip lock container you see people buying at WM which is made in China, Thailand, or worse is actually sold in Kroger, Safeway, Target, KMart, mom & pop shops, online.........

Ohh... and that clock....

Ohh... and that little trunk....

Ohh, and that windshield wiper.....

Ohh, and that bird house.....

which leads me to wonder... WHY are you focussing all your anger at WM?

[ddTaylor]

This is obviously good news for those who don't live near an Apple store.

However, I'm puzzled that Apple is willing to let their brand be diminished by selling the iPhone there.

Best Buy isn't exactly top of the line, but at least they're all about electronics.

walmart seems to be attempting to go upscale and must have lobbied Apple extensively to be able to sell the iPhone.

I would love to know what went on behind the scenes of this misalliance.

You are not well informed as Walmart has sold the Apple 'brand' for more a very long time. Have you been inside a Walmart? I see Apple everywhere. I see it in the jewelry counter near the entrance and in the back near TV 's.

D

[ddTaylor]

Yeah, but the people who shop at Walmart are NOT the demographic that supports Apple products because they can't afford them. Have you ever been to a Walmart and noticed the people pushing their carts around? If not, go do that and come back here and explain how you think they will be able to afford the monthly service fees. Most of the people who go to Walmart so they can buy cheap crap. If they need a phone they are going for the pay-as-you-go type deal because that's all they can afford. Especially since they are only giving a measly 2 bucks off.

You know that Walmart sells more iPod's and accessories than almost any retailer in the United States? Last I checked the iPod was a heck of a high margin item - and if Apple sells many iPod's through Walmart doesn't that mean Walmart and the customers there in help support Apple?

D

[McPaul]

Sorry, you misread my tone... I don't find anything funny about Wallmart.

Their business plan is brilliant-- I really do believe that. And, aside from a few labor issues here than there, and the occasional discrimination issue, I believe what they're doing is perfectly legit. I also believe that it's completely gutting the country's economy and is leading us to ruin.

It's amazing to me what the average American is willing to sacrifice to save a nickel on peanut butter.

I also give the Walton family tremendous credit for converting that cultural tendency into great personal wealth. I don't consider that an indicator of personal merit, but I do agree it shows they had a working business plan.




Yes, but you see.... it's not ONLY WM. Sure, many of us THINK it's only WM because WM by FAR has the biggest Negative marketing campaign targeted against them, and because they're the BIGGEST of the companies that are doing this, but the "outsourcing of america" as someone earlier called it... is a worldwide trend that THOUSANDS of companies are participating in.

The hate should NOT be focussed on just WM alone.

Which it seems to be.

[k2spitfire88]

snip
Apple is a privilege. You should be proud of owning an Apple product. If you are embarrassed then you no longer deserve to be in the Apple community.

Hate to burst your bubble, but Apple doesn't give a crap about your privilege of owning an Apple product, or about the community as a whole. They care about what all companies (Wal-Mart included) care about...wait for it...
money, and profits. That's it. They want to make money. Not just internetmachine, but everyone who is getting ticked off over this needs to chill. Wal-Mart sells a bunch of iPod's for Apple, and that hasn't tarnished the image, it just gives Apple more money. This is just more of the same. It's not really a big deal, and it doesn't tarnish Apple's image at all. If you think it does, you need to get over yourself, and stop thinking that Apple is an elite thing. The point is, they want to make money, plain and simple, and viewed this as a good way to make more money.

[Analog Kid]

That same toy that you see people buying at WM which is made in China, Thailand, or worse is actually sold in KMart, sold in Target, sold in mom & pop shops, sold online, sold at Toys R Us, sold at...... so while you so vociferously are blaming WM, you might as well blame alllll these other companies too.
[...etc...]
which leads me to wonder... WHY are you focussing all your anger at WM?
First, read my posts. I'm not mad at WM at all. Actually, I don't think I've shown any of the passion you're crediting me with. I'm not going to repeat my point here...

Why do I give special attention to Wallmart? For the same reason I give special attention to sharks-- there's a lot of predators out there, the shark just happens to be among the best evolved.

[Lynxpoint]

That same toy that you see people buying at WM which is made in China, Thailand, or worse is actually sold in KMart, sold in Target, sold in mom & pop shops, sold online, sold at Toys R Us, sold at...... so while you so vociferously are blaming WM, you might as well blame alllll these other companies too.

Ohh... and that same zip lock container you see people buying at WM which is made in China, Thailand, or worse is actually sold in Kroger, Safeway, Target, KMart, mom & pop shops, online.........

Ohh... and that clock....

Ohh... and that little trunk....

Ohh, and that windshield wiper.....

Ohh, and that bird house.....

which leads me to wonder... WHY are you focussing all your anger at WM?

I think wal-mart makes an easy target because of their size (their success). Everybody "knows" Wal-mart.

You raise a very important issue - where is the mind of the consumer? It is not on the entire impact their choices make. It is much more narrowly focused than that. It comes down to "what is in it for me?" Very simple indeed. When things are out of sight, or the impacts are not immediate, they are not thought about. Of course there are those that care deeply, and those that could not be brought to care if their life depended on it. Of course, most likely both ends could be found in a wal-mart somewhere. This is because the measures are relative.

When it comes to the global economy however, how many sit back and take note of how at a national level "socialism is a failed experiment" (pure socialism), at a global level key elements of it are what enable the pockets of capitalism to "thrive"?

what ever happened to fair price for suitable quality? (suitable quality meaning product lasts for a suitable period of use - a garbage bag has to not burst only until it is taken away, a macbook "a wee bit longer" :) ) This problem is that to drive up sales, you need more "consumers" and/or more rapid return of said consumers. For items of short lifespan (think food for example) you can cut costs and raise profits by cutting the quality of the ingredients. In the case of food the shelves are stocked with nutritionally deficient foods at cheap prices, yet the people are cheating themselves - out of health. And as goes the health of the person so goes the health of everything else. In a society that has short term, constant growth, measures as success is it no surprise it is having the same effects as something else that constantly grows - malignant cancer?

[Tallest Skil]

*skims last few pages without reading*

In other news, an expansion of market penetration that can only be deemed as good for Apple is turned into a resoundingly pointless e-bicker on MacRumors:Forums, where the semantics of corporate policy are thrown back and forth.

I believe I've summarized that fairly well. :D

[Analog Kid]

Yes, but you see.... it's not ONLY WM. Sure, many of us THINK it's only WM because WM by FAR has the biggest Negative marketing campaign targeted against them, and because they're the BIGGEST of the companies that are doing this, but the "outsourcing of america" as someone earlier called it... is a worldwide trend that THOUSANDS of companies are participating in.

The hate should NOT be focussed on just WM alone.

Which it seems to be.
No need to YELL. The toolbar has formatting tools that let you make your point more subtly.

Never said it was only Wallmart, never said we shouldn't hate other companies, never said this was only about outsourcing. I happen to be talking about Wallmart in a futile attempt to remain somewhat faithful to the thread topic, I think the big box craze as a whole is a problem and Wallmart is simply the most accomplished entity, and I started my comments by focusing on the impact to the regional economy.

I know it's hard to read all the way to the end of a post when you have so many important things to say, but it really helps keep the conversation directed if you do.

[kornyboy]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5G77 Safari/525.20)

Wow. One heck of a cut by having the iPhone in Walmart. I didn't think that this would actually happen.

[cheekybobcat]

This is depressing to me. However, it may just be because I have a hate for Wal-Mart that many others may not share.
Honestly, Wal-Mart is a dirty, unorganized, and evil corporation. I felt the iPhone was a bit more high-class if you will.

[miketcool]

It's those midwestern farmers that are Nth generation farmers in their family that the guy is talking about. Sure, if I'm not a farmer, I'm not going to work on a farm. I'm going to hire cheap labor to do it. However, if my farm was passed on through generations upon generations of my family and it's in my blood, I'm a farmer through and through. It's these midwestern farming families that are the driving force of america (and Canada)....

Thomas Jefferson would be proud to hear that coming from anyone. Many of the voices for farmers are long gone and it is only a matter of time before those who live naïve lives, sucking on the boob tube ruin the last bit of freedom left in the world. Walmart does not have a clean track record, nor do many unobserved corporations. This constant summarization without any evidence or factual information is only going to make things worse. The noble farmer is a dying breed.

spend some time there

Driving through is about as useful as watching a biased report or show on TV. I drove through Nebraska and saw a man in overalls passed out in an alley. Should I assume everyone in Nebraska is a drunken whino? Talk to people, understand the situation. I'd like to shake your hand McPaul.

[jayducharme]

Having the phones in Best Buy and Wal Mart are critical if they want to reach huge sales numbers.

That's the only reason I can see for involving Walmart. But there's something I've been wondering: at Best Buy, are the workers on commission? Years ago I worked at Radio Shack, and we would rabidly push certain cell phones because we got higher commissions on certain models. Walmart employees most likely have no stake in what cell phone you buy. And they're probably not going to suggest a more expensive phone like the iPhone, especially if the employees don't actually use the phones themselves. The same I would think would be true at Best Buy (more so if they earn commission). It seems like sales associates would be more likely to push a cell phone that they think the person will buy, hence a cheaper model unless a customer specifically asks for the iPhone.

That might be true of AT&T employees as well. They might be more inclined to push phones with higher profit margins. I guess about the only place the iPhone would be pushed exclusively would be at Apple stores.

Any thoughts on this?

[unitysong]

Wal-Mart must be desperate if they're selling something made in a factory that doesn't involve indentured servitude and gross human rights violations. What next, allow workers to unionize or extend their catalog of U.S.-made goods to more than 20%?

Always exploiting people and communities. Always.™

[misfit356tsw]

I just want to say
1. Apple is not a corporation, they are a mom and pop shop full of unicorns, rainbows and Oompa Loompas.
2. Apple products are not made in China. They are made by Oompa Loompas who are paid in candy.
3. Apple doesn't make a huge profit. They are a non profit that gives their profits to starving Oompa Loompa children in Oompa Loompa land.
4. Apple hates rampant consumerism. Because Oompa Loompas hate capitalism and Apple really hates you buying their products.

I'm glad I can feel good about buying Apple because they are a different kind of company than that evil Wal-Mart.:rolleyes:

[bluefido]

I just want to say
1. Apple is not a corporation, they are a mom and pop shop full of unicorns, rainbows and Oompa Loompas.
2. Apple products are not made in China. They are made by Oompa Loompas who are paid in candy.
3. Apple doesn't make a huge profit. They are a non profit that gives their profits to starving Oompa Loompa children in Oompa Loompa land.
4. Apple hates rampant consumerism. Because Oompa Loompas hate capitalism and Apple really hates you buying their products.

I'm glad I can feel good about buying Apple because they are a different kind of company than that evil Wal-Mart.:rolleyes:

Best comment about the absurdity of the Wal-Mart hating Apple diehards.

[macnulty]

Why is Apple in Wal-Mart? It is the largest (by far) retailer in the world. Apple wants to sell iPhones, ATT wants to sell contracts, Wal-Mart is everywhere.

[megfilmworks]

In many towns in the midwest Walmart is all there is. It's the supermarket, food court, clothing store, appliance store, tire store, gas station, etc. And without it these small towns would have fewer choices and higher prices.
There are no Apple Stores, At&t stores, Best Buys, etc for these consumers.

[babyj]

Are there Wal-Marts in countries outside of North America?

They own Asda - the 3rd largest supermarket chain in the UK, but they've never fully re-branded it as Wal-Mart for some reason. Which is kind of strange as Asda isn't a particularly strong brand being viewed as cheap, nasty and tacky though that has improved.

There are two Asda's near me, both out of town, one big and one massive. Both are open 24 hours a day except for Sunday, they shut late on Saturday, open for 6 hours on Sunday then open early Monday. I'm sure they'd be open 24 hours a day on Sunday but the law in the UK says 6 hours only. I know plenty of people that work there or have worked there and haven't heard any complaints from any of them either.

If anything the supermarket that catches all the flack in the UK is Tesco, who hold the number one spot by some distance and account for something like 1 in 8 £'s spent in the UK in shops. I doubt Wal-Mart or Tesco do anything particularly bad other than being very successful which is why they get such a rough time from people.

[kwong2006]

I object to this with every fiber of my being. This act cheapens the iPhone. Who would want one now? (me of course! but not from WalMart)

[megfilmworks]

According to demographic research from 2003 "WalMart is shopped by 84% of US families".
In small towns the Supercenter's are the only game in town.
I think this shows that the average WalMart customer is NOT "too poor to buy an iPhone".

[danredwing]

Yeah, but the people who shop at Walmart are NOT the demographic that supports Apple products because they can't afford them. Have you ever been to a Walmart and noticed the people pushing their carts around? If not, go do that and come back here and explain how you think they will be able to afford the monthly service fees. Most of the people who go to Walmart so they can buy cheap crap. If they need a phone they are going for the pay-as-you-go type deal because that's all they can afford. Especially since they are only giving a measly 2 bucks off.

I occasionally shop at Walmart. I also use a macbook, an iphone and an ipod nano. I have a Family plan and pay $120+ a month for my wireless service. I also have a $250,000 mortgage and own a couple of pretty nice vehicles. I have a family of 5 and work as a professional in the Financial Industry. When I go to Wal-Mart, I see all types of people. The demographic is pretty representative of the population of our city.

To be honest, I prefer Target for the same types of products, mainly because it is easier to navigate the store and they seem to manage their stock better, but there are certain things that I'll stop by Wal-mart for.

All that being said, I don't appreciate the ignorant, stereotyping that is being made here about what type of people shop at Wal-Mart. Many opinions are being stated here as fact and seem primarily driven by some sort of principled hate of Wal-Mart on moral grounds. There are issues with Wal-Mart...we all know that.

The basic stuff to remember is this; Apple is a corporation that is in the business of making money...generally as much as possible. Wal-mart is the same. It makes sense for them to partner up to make money together...much like the way Apple paired up with AT&T. In fact this, ranting is pretty similar to the posts that went up as soon as Apple announced that partnership almost 2 years ago.

[darthraige]

Originally Posted by months
*AND the salespeople won't know what they are talking about!

Just like the Apple store!


Ooooooh, I second that. I challenged them once, it was great. I won of course. haha

[megfilmworks]

This article should stop the bickering, just the facts:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2007-11-20-holiday-shopping_N.htm

Wal-Mart
24.0% Hi. income $100,000+
36.9% Med. income
39.1% Lo. income Less than $50,000

[puckhead193]

Is there some sort of advantage to buy it at Walmart?

I would imagine this will certainly kill the aura of "exclusivity"

which is the one thing i hate about the iphone. Other then AT&T.

[hazza.jockel]

I hated Wal-Mart ever since I saw that Family guy episode about it :D

I was just thinking of that.
.....................................................

It is so funny as a non-American to read through this thread and see the bickering that goes on. Personally I couldn't care less if the iphone is sold at wal-mart because last time i checked there wasn't one in the country i live in. But to everyone that is downing Wal-mart: have you ever heard of tall poppy syndrome? Seriously, from what i know Wal-mart is a shining example of American capitalism, remember that economic practice that you fought for not so long ago? If you don't like it move, thats my principle.

[behrmon]

I just want to say
1. Apple is not a corporation, they are a mom and pop shop full of unicorns, rainbows and Oompa Loompas.
2. Apple products are not made in China. They are made by Oompa Loompas who are paid in candy.
3. Apple doesn't make a huge profit. They are a non profit that gives their profits to starving Oompa Loompa children in Oompa Loompa land.
4. Apple hates rampant consumerism. Because Oompa Loompas hate capitalism and Apple really hates you buying their products.

I'm glad I can feel good about buying Apple because they are a different kind of company than that evil Wal-Mart.:rolleyes:

GREAT!! :)

Best comment about the absurdity of the Wal-Mart hating Apple diehards.

Ditto, I feel that most of these posts are from Apple elitists rather than folks that truly care about the condition of humanity. As much as I can't stand the Windows/PC world many of these post make me feel that many of the "apple snob" comments hold some water.

[SnowLeopard2008]

I'd still rather stop by the Apple Store to buy an iPhone 3G... I'd get a much better experience for just 2 itty bitty bucks more. Not to mention I will be getting quality service and not some high-school dropout helping me.

[Eidorian]

I'd still rather stop by the Apple Store to buy an iPhone 3G... I'd get a much better experience for just 2 itty bitty bucks more. Not to mention I will be getting quality service and not some high-school dropout helping me.Sadly the Apple Store doesn't have the proliferation of Wal-Mart. I find the Apple Store employees not to be much more capable either unless they're a Genius.

[QuarterSwede]

Sadly the Apple Store doesn't have the proliferation of Wal-Mart. I find the Apple Store employees not to be much more capable either unless they're a Genius.
There's a huge difference. In the Apple Store you can actually find someone to help you.

[Eidorian]

There's a huge difference. In the Apple Store you can actually find someone to help you.I'm sure I'd enjoy driving to the only Apple Store in the state vs. Wal-Mart or Best Buy. It's tough even finding a Best Buy sometimes depending on where you live.

[QuarterSwede]

I'm sure I'd enjoy driving to the only Apple Store in the state vs. Wal-Mart or Best Buy. It's tough even finding a Best Buy sometimes depending on where you live.
True. Although not everyone has that problem. My Apple Store is 5 minutes from where I work.

[Bubba Satori]

Why would you willingly give money to WalMart?


Is this a trick question ? I would guess to buy a product from them. :rolleyes:

[Eidorian]

True. Although not everyone has that problem. My Apple Store is 5 minutes from where I work.I'm sure that I must not be worthy to be a Mac user or get an iPhone then. :rolleyes:

[monster620ie]

I am not even close to being rich but I never shop at walmart and make sure to boycott it.

chinamart = walmart = unfair labour rights = evil monopoly = cost cities lots $$ = affect manufacturers negatively

[AmbitiousLemon]

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[bruinsrme]

Kellogg's Corn Flakes is sent from Distribution Center (DC) to Retailers.

DC ----shipping to----> Wal-Mart
DC ----shipping to----> Non Wal-Mart

Amount of time during transport is equal.

How is my box of Kellogg's Corn Flakes from "non Wal-Mart" any better than the one I pick up from Wal-Mart???

They have to justify spending $2+ on the same box of ceral somehow.
I have noticed the opposite at the Super Walmart. The food there is always has later exp on box goods, dairy, and other consumable than the pricechopper and stop and shop.
WhenI can save 20%-40% on the same items shopping walmart, guess what I will be ther.

[bruinsrme]

I am not even close to being rich but I never shop at walmart and make sure to boycott it.

chinamart = walmart = unfair labour rights = evil monopoly = cost cities lots $$ = affect manufacturers negatively

obviously you haven't been to other stores looking at the Made in labels.
There isn't much out there that says Made in the USA.

Unfair evil monoply? I guess stores like Target, Fred Meier and others don't operate in the USA?

Yeah Walmart should take a page or two from the auto industry or the banks.

[Resident Guru]

The elitist attitude exhibited from many posters here is truly sad. So much misinformation is spread here about Wal-Mart it borders on the ridiculous. I realize the company I work for isn't perfect. There are many great things about Wal-Mart for which I am quite proud. My father works for Wal-Mart. He's been with the company 35 years. He has no college education and started out as a stocker. He has now been a store manager for more than twenty years and makes 200k plus a year. This is with no college education. There are thousands of examples of this within the company.

I have been an Assistant Manager for almost 5 years and will make 55k this year in Oklahoma where the cost of living is very low, in other areas they give adjustments in pay based on cost of living. Even if I were to stay in my current position I would continue to receive raises for many more years before I reached the top end of the pay scale. Good pay at Wal-Mart is attainable. Yes, many of our positions are unskilled labor and pay is on the lower end, this is true for most every unskilled position people get hired for. All you super cool people who love Target should know that our total pay and benefits package has been rated above theirs by companies that rate retailer pay and benefits.

However, you can work a regular stocking position and make a good living by staying with the company and getting raises. We have regular stockers at my store making 13-17 dollars an hour. Many of these people have been with the company 6-8 years. All Wal-Marts offer bonuses based on store performance. Last year at my store it was around $1700 for all associates that averaged 35 hours a week or more. Hell even part time associates working 20 hours a week received something around $1400.

My point is that you shouldn't just drink all the anti-Wal-Mart Kool Aid you read out there. I know I understand the shortcomings of my company. I work in a very nice area, and Wal-Marts in Oklahoma and surrounding states tend to be nice, clean stores. I know there are Wal-Marts in depressed areas or areas that are new to Wal-Mart that are likely to be pretty terrible and I wouldn't fault people for not shopping there. However, one cannot judge the entire company on one bad experience. There is much good that Wal-Mart brings. If they weren't so damn good at what they do then why are we so popular? Why do so many people choose to work there if all the company does is crap on their workers? There are hundreds of places to work and shop people. :rolleyes:

Sorry to get a little off topic. As for the iPhone coming to Wal-Mart it is a fantastic decision by Apple. They will reach a market that is far, far greater than they can through AT&T, Best Buy and Apple stores combined. This will help them sell a lot more phones and make more money, which is kind of the point of having a business don't you think? Products like Macbooks and iMacs probably should not be sold in Wal-Mart stores. Our business model doesn't lend itself to a more involved and hands on customer experience. However, the iPhone is a phone at heart and Wal-Mart already has in store cell phone kiosks built into the electronics department of most stores. Also, through our associate discount we would also receive 10% off of the price of the phone itself. Personally I'm excited as when the next revision of the iPhone is released (iPhone 2G 16GB owner) I can buy it from Wal-Mart and save a little bit of cash. :D

[skellener]

I actually like Wal-Mart. It's by far the cheapest place to purchase groceries (particularly boxed and canned goods) here. I don't buy produce or meat there (prefer my local guys), but for everything else it's great.

I suppose you could spend the extra 30 percent at other stores like Kroger, but why pay more for the same products? :rolleyes:

And the "slave labor" comment is out of line. The people that work at Wal-Mart choose to work there. I worked there for about a year in high school, and they paid quite a bit above what others were offering for the same type of employment. Not to mention, I received regular raises (every 60-90 days) and a yearly $2000+ profit-sharing "bonus."

That's not bad for a 16 year-old. I suspect that the majority of people that look down at discounters like Wal-Mart either have too much money or are just jumping on the "I hate" bandwagon. Everyone hates a winner (just look at the sheer amount of Microsoft bashing on this Web site).Enjoy your Walmart! Gotta save that $2!

Walmart Employees Speakout (http://walmartspeakout.com/speak-out/stories/c/corporate_culture)

[twoodcc]

well this should really help iphone sales. very glad to see this happening

[bruinsrme]

Enjoy your Walmart! Gotta save that $2!

Walmart Employees Speakout (http://walmartspeakout.com/speak-out/stories/c/corporate_culture)

Read that page and it is laughable.

I make a very decent coin. I went from an engineer at Intel to a tech at another company. It took me a while but if the engineer wants me to move something from there to here and in another hour move it back I say absolutely. I get paid to do a job and if my boss has me do stupid crap all day well so be it.
don't get sick at walmart, you may want to read your states labor laws, I was SHOCKED at the Massachusetts labor laws.
Pregnant women, that is a whole other legal mess. Won't touch that subject with a wireless mouse.

[inkswamp]

From a business standpoint any entrepreneur would love their product to be sold at a major retail chain. It requires less advertisement because of the exposure.

It's a double-edged sword. (http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/77/walmart.html)

[McPaul]

Enjoy your Walmart! Gotta save that $2!

Walmart Employees Speakout (http://walmartspeakout.com/speak-out/stories/c/corporate_culture)

again, this one is also funded by the Wal-Mart Watch.

I'm somewhat surprised... most WM union organizers don't make their campaigning quite as obvious.

[McPaul]

I'd still rather stop by the Apple Store to buy an iPhone 3G... I'd get a much better experience for just 2 itty bitty bucks more. Not to mention I will be getting quality service and not some high-school dropout helping me.


oh for sure. With products like this, the advantage is buying them at a store owned by the manufacturer. If there was an apple store in Calgary when I bought my iphone, I would have gone there.

As it was, I bought it at a Rogers Video 10 minute walk from my house on the 3rd day they were out. They had stock, and there were no activation delays.

[McPaul]

This article should stop the bickering, just the facts:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2007-11-20-holiday-shopping_N.htm

Wal-Mart
24.0% Hi. income $100,000+
36.9% Med. income
39.1% Lo. income Less than $50,000



Good find! Interesting to see some actual numbers on this. Somewhat confirms my thoughts. Although I would have thought Med Income would be lower and that % moved to Hi. Income. More of an hourglass. but that's fine.

[Sehnsucht]

That's the only reason I can see for involving Walmart. But there's something I've been wondering: at Best Buy, are the workers on commission? Years ago I worked at Radio Shack, and we would rabidly push certain cell phones because we got higher commissions on certain models. Walmart employees most likely have no stake in what cell phone you buy.

You are correct, we have absolutely none. Each store receives commissions from each respective carrier for each new contract, but they go to Sam Walton's kids, not us. ;)

[Sehnsucht]

The elitist attitude exhibited from many posters here is truly sad. So much misinformation is spread here about Wal-Mart it borders on the ridiculous. I realize the company I work for isn't perfect. There are many great things about Wal-Mart for which I am quite proud. My father works for Wal-Mart. He's been with the company 35 years. He has no college education and started out as a stocker. He has now been a store manager for more than twenty years and makes 200k plus a year. This is with no college education. There are thousands of examples of this within the company.

I have been an Assistant Manager for almost 5 years and will make 55k this year in Oklahoma where the cost of living is very low, in other areas they give adjustments in pay based on cost of living. Even if I were to stay in my current position I would continue to receive raises for many more years before I reached the top end of the pay scale. Good pay at Wal-Mart is attainable. Yes, many of our positions are unskilled labor and pay is on the lower end, this is true for most every unskilled position people get hired for. All you super cool people who love Target should know that our total pay and benefits package has been rated above theirs by companies that rate retailer pay and benefits.

However, you can work a regular stocking position and make a good living by staying with the company and getting raises. We have regular stockers at my store making 13-17 dollars an hour. Many of these people have been with the company 6-8 years. All Wal-Marts offer bonuses based on store performance. Last year at my store it was around $1700 for all associates that averaged 35 hours a week or more. Hell even part time associates working 20 hours a week received something around $1400.

My point is that you shouldn't just drink all the anti-Wal-Mart Kool Aid you read out there. I know I understand the shortcomings of my company. I work in a very nice area, and Wal-Marts in Oklahoma and surrounding states tend to be nice, clean stores. I know there are Wal-Marts in depressed areas or areas that are new to Wal-Mart that are likely to be pretty terrible and I wouldn't fault people for not shopping there. However, one cannot judge the entire company on one bad experience. There is much good that Wal-Mart brings. If they weren't so damn good at what they do then why are we so popular? Why do so many people choose to work there if all the company does is crap on their workers? There are hundreds of places to work and shop people. :rolleyes:

Hear hear. And so often, we forget about the people who choose to work at Wal-Mart because they FEEL LIKE IT. ;) At my store, I work with at least a dozen women whose husbands make $300,000+ per year, and quite obviously don't NEED a job at all. To some people, a part time job in retail is a good way to kill some time that you would otherwise spend at home watching either TV or the maid while she scrubs down your master bathroom. And then there are the sixty-something women who could have easily retired already but would rather be doing something constructive around people. (And just as a side note, the people who are working for ****** and grins are ALWAYS the best workers and the most fun to be around. It's quite a paradox.) :D ;)

[MacTraveller]

Is there some sort of advantage to buy it at Walmart?

I would imagine this will certainly kill the aura of "exclusivity"

Apple = Exclusivity is so last decade. Go go market share!

[JoeG4]

Way to go, Macrumors community, to generalize like the rest of you guys:

The average MacRumors goer is:
*Ignorant
*Racist (I saw a half dozen illegal immigrant comments, mexican comments, and spanish comments)
*See ignorant for my second accusation, bunching mexicans in with the rest of spanish people and insinuating they are all illegal immigrants is racist.
*Elitist

You guys disgust me. Now I see why people keep saying the worst thing about owning Apple hardware is you get generalized as a Mac user *shudder*

Anyway? Who cares? Retail is retail, whether it be Apple, Best Buy, or whatever else (Target?) - Target is just as bad as Walmart, perhaps even worse. Last I heard, Walmart doesn't track their customers in the stores (it kinda shows, though) - not nearly as hard as Target or Apple does.

Ironic that Apple uses the same system Target does and an Apple store is even more irritating than Target. Why do I say that? Targets are a bit too hot, but the lines are short - they usually don't have at least one of the things I'm looking for (they always run out of toilet paper >_<), but the rest is okay.

Apple, while they have ample stock, they do a terrible job managing the genius bar and could ALMOST ALWAYS use twice the square footage, Apple stores are crowded, stuffy, and make me dizzy from all of the people in that cramped little space.

[pol0001]

There are wal-marts in China, I remember reading an article about the only wal-mart in Germany closing because the people didn't shop there because they didn't want there to be a wal-mart.

Wal-Mart sold al its shops in Germany and South Korea at the same time, last year.
In Germany, Wal-Mart couldn't made a profit with it's stores. The big discounters like Aldi, Netto, Lidl etc. with their smaller stores are far mor popular. German customers are very "price conscious" when it comes to groceries. And there is a fierce competition.

[nyctravis]

It's ironic to see all the anger about Wal-Mart making the iPhone less-than-chic while clamoring for the iFart app. Hellloooooooooo :)

[bruinsrme]

It's ironic to see all the anger about Wal-Mart making the iPhone less-than-chic while clamoring for the iFart app. Hellloooooooooo :)

cmon farting is humor

[rmb7984]

Dude the "slave labor" comment wasn't directed at the people who work at Wall Marts.

How do you think they can sell their merchandise at such low prices?

Rent the movie "Wall Mart The high cost of low prices"

I will never spend a penny at a Wall Mart. They are an evil corporation, like most big corporations.
We all need to educate ourselves about big corporations, especially big retail corporations.
For the longest time GM was our nations largest employer. Now one guess who it is now........ Wall Mart.


Amen to this. Walmart moves into small towns, destroys the competition from small businesses, and forces the people who used to work in the small businesses to become their employees. "Slave" may be strong word, but it's not too far off the mark. Not to mention the fact that walmart is on the verge of settling a class action lawsuit for modifying time cards for employees and underpaying them. And, they are notorious for keeping many employees just under full time status to avoid providing health benefits. This is a company I simply refuse to support.

[moracity]

The Wal-mart move is purely for market penetration. Believe it or not, there are still many areas that do not have at&t stores, Best Buys, or Apple stores. Wal-marts are EVERYWHERE. There are millions of people that shop exclusively at Wal-mart now that has become like it's own strip mall. In many towns, Wal-mart is THE mall. This is a brilliant move by Apple to increase iPhone sales. This is the move to make the iPhone a commodity.

[moracity]

Dude the "slave labor" comment wasn't directed at the people who work at Wall Marts.

How do you think they can sell their merchandise at such low prices?

Rent the movie "Wall Mart The high cost of low prices"

I will never spend a penny at a Wall Mart. They are an evil corporation, like most big corporations.
We all need to educate ourselves about big corporations, especially big retail corporations.
For the longest time GM was our nations largest employer. Now one guess who it is now........ Wall Mart.

Yeah, they are a big evil corporation that provide millions of jobs and affordable goods/services to millions of people. Wal-mart helps to drive down overall prices in the economy as well.

I will agree that the cost we are paying in supporting the growth of China is to our own detriment. Wal-mart is not evil. It's a business that provides what people want - cheap goods and services.

If you want to label something evil, look at unions. They provide $$ to themselves and higher prices to the rest of us. Unions are what have allowed companies like Wal-mart to thrive.

I personally don't shop at Wal-mart because they do have questionable business practices when it comes to small suppliers. They make small companies dependent on their business, then eventually force them to sell at lower prices. If they don't comply, they steal the product idea and send to China to be manufactured - putting that supplier out of business. Unfortunately, this is how business works - always has, always will. It's the price of freedom. It's a small price to pay, though. At least that small supplier can change it's business.

[gkarris]

Yeah, they are a big evil corporation that provide millions of jobs and affordable goods/services to millions of people. Wal-mart helps to drive down overall prices in the economy as well.
.

FYI - I had to buy a couple of USB cables for a client site and at Wal-Mart they're $15 each...

Same cables (name brand Belkin) are $7 each at Frys... :eek:

(I stocked up...) :)

[bruinsrme]

FYI - I had to buy a couple of USB cables for a client site and at Wal-Mart they're $15 each...

Same cables (name brand Belkin) are $7 each at Frys... :eek:

(I stocked up...) :)

Fryes has some great deals.

[Maxington]

Eeeks there goes the neighborhood. iMarts...

[nxent]

why is this a bad thing? oh wait... that's 'walmart' we're talking about...

[skellener]

If you want to label something evil, look at unions. They provide $$ to themselves and higher prices to the rest of us. Unions are what have allowed companies like Wal-mart to thrive.And corporations DON'T provide $$$ to themselves? Complete B.S.

[iOrlando]

i really dont understand the whole argument of exclusivity....


you do know anyone can go to the apple store or at&t store. it seems like people just dont want apple products sold at walmart because of the type of people that shop at walmart..which isnt that nice to say and also ipods are already sold at walmart...

how does selling something at walmart reduce the value of the product when the price is basically the same? i understand if the ipod was for 89 there and 200 everywhere else...but its only 3 dollars cheaper...and im sure walmart is probably pitching in those 3 bucks anyways...

[Analog Kid]

If you want to label something evil, look at unions. They provide $$ to themselves and higher prices to the rest of us. Unions are what have allowed companies like Wal-mart to thrive.
I know, right?! Things were so much better in the days when 14 year olds were working 12 hour days, 6 days a week for subsistence wages until they suffered some sort of injury and were left by the wayside. Then the profit-driven unions had to come through and ruin it all.

What I'm really sorry I missed out on though was feudalism. Now those were the days...

[stockcerts]

I find it odd how many Apple users on this board have elitist attitudes towards Walmart. Economic times have changed. We now have a global economy, and in many cases...yes many of the small mom and pop stores are gone. They are unable to compete, kind of sad, but times change.

I have met several people that work at Walmart and they enjoy their job and think highly of their employer.

[newb16]

I don't understand these complaints about "meager $2 off". It could me much worse if Apple was talked into making significantly cheaper ( crippled ) iphone, well... say.. no accelerometer, no gps, 4 gb instead of 8g. And mandatory nvidia gpu.

[Drag'nGT]

This is ****ing stupid. Apple wants iPhones in Walmart as if Walmart has an untapped market that a person shopping at AT&T, Apple or Best Buy doesn't have.

They do this but they can't get Macs into all the Best Buy locations. My local BB could easily support a Mac store inside it.

[skellener]

I find it odd how many Apple users on this board have elitist attitudes towards Walmart. Economic times have changed. We now have a global economy, and in many cases...yes many of the small mom and pop stores are gone. They are unable to compete, kind of sad, but times change.You vote with your dollar. It's not elitist at all. You have a choice where to spend your money. By spending your money at Walmart, you are endorsing their practices of running small mom & pop stores out of business. Do not disconnect yourself from the action just because of the downturn in the economy. You are indeed supporting Walmart's practices by shopping there.

[samab]

You vote with your dollar. It's not elitist at all. You have a choice where to spend your money. By spending your money at Walmart, you are endorsing their practices of running small mom & pop stores out of business. Do not disconnect yourself from the action just because of the downturn in the economy. You are indeed supporting Walmart's practices by shopping there.

Which is why I don't have a problem buying Microsoft stuff.

Bill Gates has pledged to give away 95% of his wealth to charity --- so when you buy Microsoft products, you will ultimately help the world. Bill Gates isn't going to spend money on a 400 foot yacht or buying a sports team or spending money on a third/fourth trophy wife.

[rosh325]

Just a reminder for those looking to destroy the wal-mart, its heart it located in the back by the TV section.

[oban14]

It might be time to sell my iphone. At one point the iphone represented cutting edge technology, and now it's literally just another chinese made gadget they sell at Walmart.

Oh well, it's been fun. On to the next big thing! :o

[CashGap]

My son spotted the units charging on a storage shelf.

Sorry for pic quality, I was trying to be discrete, taken on iPhone 3g.

[SPUY767]

Only advantage is if supporting slave labor is something you like to do.

Because wal-mart won't unionize, it's slave labor? If wal-mart unionized its labor force I'd boycott.

[SPUY767]

I find it odd how many Apple users on this board have elitist attitudes towards Walmart. Economic times have changed. We now have a global economy, and in many cases...yes many of the small mom and pop stores are gone. They are unable to compete, kind of sad, but times change.

I have met several people that work at Walmart and they enjoy their job and think highly of their employer.

It's unions. Unions = money in liberal pockets, so non-union establishments = bad press in liberal media. Bad press in liberal media = uninformed liberals hating said entity. Let wal-mart unionize. That would be tantamount to a 15% sales tax on goods because wal-mart forces other retailers to price their goods lower. Wal-mart is a company who has always refused to play by the underhanded rules of retail whereby retailers will collude with one another to keep prices high. Wal-mart generally runs in and drops low price bombs on their high profit margin parade. Why the hell do you think you can get a 50: TV from samsung for less thatn $900.00?

[Lershac]

Putting the iPhone into Wal-mart is just about market penetration. You can get just about any other mobile phone there, and ALOT of phones move through those kiosks. Not putting the iPhones there would be just stupid on Apples part, as it would be limiting your market penetration. This is an excellent move for Apple as a mobile phone maker.

For Apple the computer maker, the more revenue Apple generates from iPhone sales, the less attention the computer side of the business will get. Unfortunately, if Apple really achieves market dominance with the phone line of products, then the computer side of things will suffer greatly, as it will not be the profit center of the company.

Wal-mart has a great business model, and the infrastructure to be the great company they are. I really feel like the problems within the company are not systemic but are the product of bad people and decision making, and the company as a whole is not evil. You just are going to have bad folks in a company any time you have THAT many people employed. It is a never-ending process to find them and weed them out.

[Lershac]

If wal-mart unionized its labor force I'd boycott.

Wal-mart will never unionize, but the employees might.

Then Wal-mart would shut down that store. They have done this repeatedly. They have the legal choice to not operate if they feel they cannot profitable operate the store after it unionizes.

All you Apple elitists are just that... elitists. And probably proud of it, but are too democrat to just come out and be PUBLICLY proud of it.

[Sehnsucht]

Way to go, Macrumors community, to generalize like the rest of you guys:

The average MacRumors goer is:
*Ignorant
*Racist (I saw a half dozen illegal immigrant comments, mexican comments, and spanish comments)
*See ignorant for my second accusation, bunching mexicans in with the rest of spanish people and insinuating they are all illegal immigrants is racist.
*Elitist

You guys disgust me. Now I see why people keep saying the worst thing about owning Apple hardware is you get generalized as a Mac user *shudder*

I completely agree. I see this so often: there are so many elitist snobs who equate the :apple: logo on their computer with their own political ideology...as if a computer company has anything the hell to do with gay marriage or whatever else you are trying to shove in people's faces. Mac users fall into every political category, folks. There are Mac users in "red states"....yes someone actually did make an asinine comment about Apple not setting foot in red states. :mad: A couple months ago, I posted this rant (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=589780&highlight=My+own+Get+a+Mac+rant...from+personal+experience) and was immediately jumped on and ripped to shreds for sounding like an elitist snob just because I hate $300 PCs. Yet the amount of racism and politics that is stirred up among elitist MR beach boys at the mere mention of Walmart FAR surpasses that I think. :rolleyes:

[gnasher729]

There are wal-marts in China, I remember reading an article about the only wal-mart in Germany closing because the people didn't shop there because they didn't want there to be a wal-mart.

It seems that in Germany Wal-Mart cannot find any suppliers. Every supplier there knows that as soon as they sell anything to Wal-Mart, no other supermarket will take any of their goods.

[E.Lizardo]

The $99 will be for the iPhone Nano - hence AT&T not caring that Wal-Mart is selling the more expensive one... :eek:

Um..why would AT&T care who sells it anyway??They male the same money.

[E.Lizardo]

I completely agree. I see this so often: there are so many elitist snobs who equate the :apple: logo on their computer with their own political ideology...as if a computer company has anything the hell to do with gay marriage or whatever else you are trying to shove in people's faces. Mac users fall into every political category, folks. There are Mac users in "red states"....yes someone actually did make an asinine comment about Apple not setting foot in red states. :mad: A couple months ago, I posted this rant (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=589780&highlight=My+own+Get+a+Mac+rant...from+personal+experience) and was immediately jumped on and ripped to shreds for sounding like an elitist snob just because I hate $300 PCs. Yet the amount of racism and politics that is stirred up among elitist MR beach boys at the mere mention of Walmart FAR surpasses that I think. :rolleyes:

True dat!I'ts fashionable to hate walmart because you "care"about the workers,even though their wages and benefits are in line with other discounters.The same idiots have no problem going to Taco Bell or 7-11.And forget the benefit of low prices to the millions of lower income americans!Hypocrites all!

[E.Lizardo]

Why would you willingly give money to WalMart?

Because I'm not a pinko snob.

[E.Lizardo]

I wouldn't recommend buying it from Walmart unless you live nowhere near an Apple Store, AT&T store, or Best Buy. Like already said, the associates will know jack squat about the phone.

I do see how this could add to the iPhone market share, though. If someone is already shopping at Walmart, which more people do than Walmart deserves, they might find it while looking at other items and end up buying it.

Here's where you should buy an iPhone. Only go to the next one if the one above it isn't near you.

1. Apple Store - They know all about the iPhone, inside and out. 90% of the people here USE iPhones as their normal phone. They know about the plans too, though not as much as AT&T.

2. AT&T - They know all about the service, but not much about the iPhone.

3. Best Buy - They have a whole department dedicated to cell phones, with associates only trained to sell cell phones. Still, they have such a large selection of cell phones that they won't know too much about the iPhone

4. Walmart - Last resort

I'm intrigued.Exactly what question would anyone on macrumours need to ask about the iphone before buying it at ANY store???

[E.Lizardo]

No need to YELL. The toolbar has formatting tools that let you make your point more subtly.

Never said it was only Wallmart, never said we shouldn't hate other companies, never said this was only about outsourcing. I happen to be talking about Wallmart in a futile attempt to remain somewhat faithful to the thread topic, I think the big box craze as a whole is a problem and Wallmart is simply the most accomplished entity, and I started my comments by focusing on the impact to the regional economy.

I know it's hard to read all the way to the end of a post when you have so many important things to say, but it really helps keep the conversation directed if you do.

People complained when tiny mom and pop groceries were replaced by supermarkets.Wanna go back?Didn't think so.Society and commerce changes.Rail against the inevitable if it makes you feel better,but beyond that,it does nothing.

[hmmfe]

People complained when tiny mom and pop groceries were replaced by supermarkets.Wanna go back?Didn't think so.Society and commerce changes.Rail against the inevitable if it makes you feel better,but beyond that,it does nothing.

Not everyone is a fatalist. It is possible to resist change that is not good for the whole of society. In other words, not all change is progress. It takes people with their minds switched on to discern the difference between the two. For some of us, going through life accepting the "inevitable" is not reasonable and is even harmful to society.

You can cheerlead for conformity if that is what makes you feel better - but it does not necessarily influence those of us that choose to plot a different course. FWIW, I do shop substantially at local "mom and pop" grocery stores. So before you submit a strawman argument and proceed to give your own strawman answer, you might want to look outside of your own experiences.

[skellener]

People complained when tiny mom and pop groceries were replaced by supermarkets.Wanna go back?Didn't think so.Society and commerce changes.Rail against the inevitable if it makes you feel better,but beyond that,it does nothing.What are you talking about? This is a ridiculous statement. There are plenty of places that still have mom & pop groceries. There are also farmer's markets and smaller food chains as well. Why does the "inevitable" mean mom & pop have to go out of business? It is possible for mom & pop and big box stores to co-exist. This gives the consumer more choice of who they want to support by where they spend their money. Walmart doesn't see it that way which is why they swoop in and destroy the competition. Society and commerce changes do NOT mean big box stores only.

[crisss1205]

Now Available at Walmart!

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/catalog.gsp?cat=1031099&povid=cat14503-env172199-module213249-lLink3

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10807273

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/catalog.gsp?cat=1031100&catNavId=542371

[skinnylegs]

What are you talking about? This is a ridiculous statement. There are plenty of places that still have mom & pop groceries. There are also farmer's markets and smaller food chains as well. Why does the "inevitable" mean mom & pop have to go out of business? It is possible for mom & pop and big box stores to co-exist. This gives the consumer more choice of who they want to support by where they spend their money. Walmart doesn't see it that way which is why they swoop in and destroy the competition. Society and commerce changes do NOT mean big box stores only.Exactly! I live in San Diego where there are a number of Walmarts *and* mom-n-pop stores and you know what? They actually coexist. We also have Farmer's Markets in just about every town and they are *hopping* with business every week. I think that most people would be surprised to know that goods and services provided by small business far surpass those provided by corporations. Actually, I am a living example. I own a small service-business that provides carpet cleaning as well as emergency service and structural drying for water damage. There are a *number* of "Walmarts" within our industry like Stanley Steamer, Coit and ServiceMaster but I'm doing just fine, thank you. :D

Oh yeah.....as far as stereotyping MR 'peeps. I own an iMac, MBP, :apple:TV, iPhone and a number of iPods. I also like George Bush, I voted for McCain and I'm straight! Go figure.

[crisss1205]

Wow, I am so disappointed in this thread so far (in terms of the posters). The main reason why Mac users are said to be uppity is largely due to the responses on this thread against Wal-mart.
Some of you think you're too damn good to shop at Wal-mart when Wal-mart is just another store that MANY of "US" (people who care about their money) shop at for our personal needs.

From .....

There are 4 Apple Stores in New York City and more than 100 AT&T Stores but in NYC there are 0 Walmart's. Why is this? Because there are still a lot of small businesses that we wont want them to go out of business.

[skinnylegs]

There are 4 Apple Stores in New York City and more than 100 AT&T Stores but in NYC there are 0 Walmart's.Maybe not New York City *proper* but close enough.....

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE4AR4QU20081128

[Darkroom]

ugh... never a good sign to see apple teaming up with Wal-Mart-Fall-Apart...

[HLdan]

I'm intrigued.Exactly what question would anyone on macrumours need to ask about the iphone before buying it at ANY store???

Thank you! It pains me how stupid some of these people on the forum are by saying that its best to go to AT&T or Apple to buy the iPhone because you can ask more questions about it and get more info. BS!!!!!

When the iPhone/3G was launched people were standing out in long lines ONLY to buy and activate the iPhone. They did not care about getting all sorts of information and have tons of questions answered about the phone. These same customers knew that Apple did not have time to do a Q/A session in terms of the iPhone. These customers bought the iPhone and went on their merry way. That's the typical cell phone customer. It's not like you're switching from PC to Mac, you don't need a bunch of questions answered to buy an iPhone.
When cheapskates go buy a $399 PC notebook on Black Friday do you think they are bugging the salespeople with endless questions? NO. They are just going in to buy and that's generally what happens when people buy iPods and iPhones. Wal-mart is an excellent vehicle to expand the iPhone.

The real truth is the snobs on this forum are nothing but kids 12-25 years old who don't have any financial responsibilities or responsibilities for that matter other than carrying their elitist snobby asses to school.
When they start having REAL financial responsibilities Wal-mart will start looking good when they need to buy underwear, socks and toiletries.

Some of you here are say the most stupidest things about not supporting Wal-mart because of "slave driven, underpaid labor". Well think about it, if you don't support Wal-mart those same "slave drive, underpaid" employees will be out of job. Which one's better?? :rolleyes:

[retrac]

Maybe not New York City *proper* but close enough.....

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE4AR4QU20081128

Plus we have Targets.

[skellener]

....so some of need here need to stop acting like you're too good to shop at Wal-mart or too good to eat at Mc Donald's. :pAnother ridiculous post. You vote with your dollars. There is more to life than supporting WalMart or McDonald's. You do have a choice (unless you live in an area where Walmart destroyed their competition).

[Sehnsucht]

Which is why I don't have a problem buying Microsoft stuff.

Bill Gates has pledged to give away 95% of his wealth to charity --- so when you buy Microsoft products, you will ultimately help the world. Bill Gates isn't going to spend money on a 400 foot yacht or buying a sports team or spending money on a third/fourth trophy wife.

He should spend it on a few Mac Pros. :D :D :D

[budkid]

If you want apple to expand it's market share on the iPhone, I think it would be a great idea to sell at walmart. Apple is smart to release the iPhone at walmart after Christmas. Walmart was the top seller of giftcards this Christmas season.

[milatchi]

Walmart* selling iPhones... THIS IS INSANELY GREAT! We're going to have to rethink shopping.

[samab]

He should spend it on a few Mac Pros. :D :D :D

Steve Jobs is the one with the gulfstream vs. Bill Gates owning a fraction of a jet from his buddy Warren Buffett's netjets company.

http://activewin.com/articles/2007/9.shtml

[nfl46]

Oh gosh, here we go again! Some people thinking they too da*n good to shop at Wal-Mart! That is SOO annoying!

My Management teacher was like that, and we all wanted to smack her in the mouth for the stuff she used to say. She admitted that she was too good to shop in Wal-Mart because she's rich and drives a Lexus. She was soo ugh! :rolleyes: I'm glad that class is over with. One more month of her constant bs and she was gonna have a fist against her mouth.

[TOPPGUNN]

I promise people on welfare will have this phone soon, we will be leaving wal-mart with a homeless guy sitting down on his iphone wondering why his phone is on the edge network when he pays good change to be on the 3g. =) :cool:

[Shawn D]

I promise people on welfare will have this phone soon, we will be leaving wal-mart with a homeless guy sitting down on his iphone wondering why his phone is on the edge network when he pays good change to be on the 3g. =) :cool:

Some people on this forum have they're nose so high in the air its surprising they can still breath..

[mozadek]

Thank you! It pains me how stupid some of these people on the forum are by saying that its best to go to AT&T or Apple to buy the iPhone because you can ask more questions about it and get more info. BS!!!!!

When the iPhone/3G was launched people were standing out in long lines ONLY to buy and activate the iPhone. They did not care about getting all sorts of information and have tons of questions answered about the phone. These same customers knew that Apple did not have time to do a Q/A session in terms of the iPhone. These customers bought the iPhone and went on their merry way. That's the typical cell phone customer. It's not like you're switching from PC to Mac, you don't need a bunch of questions answered to buy an iPhone.
When cheapskates go buy a $399 PC notebook on Black Friday do you think they are bugging the salespeople with endless questions? NO. They are just going in to buy and that's generally what happens when people buy iPods and iPhones. Wal-mart is an excellent vehicle to expand the iPhone.

The real truth is the snobs on this forum are nothing but kids 12-25 years old who don't have any financial responsibilities or responsibilities for that matter other than carrying their elitist snobby asses to school.
When they start having REAL financial responsibilities Wal-mart will start looking good when they need to buy underwear, socks and toiletries.

Some of you here are say the most stupidest things about not supporting Wal-mart because of "slave driven, underpaid labor". Well think about it, if you don't support Wal-mart those same "slave drive, underpaid" employees will be out of job. Which one's better?? :rolleyes:


Well said, I couldn't have said it better myself. The elitist here are just mad that wal-mart will "tarnish" their iPhone and they will no longer think they're cool because more people will now have them. Just like those who waited days in line to buy an iPhone so they can show it off and act like they're cool. Those same people were crying like little girls when Apple lowered the price of the iPhone by $200. That's what happens when you are among the first to buy something, you pay more because eventually the price will go down. The $200 more they paid should be called the elitist/fan boy tax, they paid more so for a while they can think they are cooler and better than everyone else.

:apple:

[nogames]

In Japan iPods are sold in 7-11s.

http://nowherenew.com/ipods7-11.jpg

Get over yourselves elitists, its a product and there is no prestige involved in owning a glorified silicon board that is designed for entertainment purposes. Apple is not some exalted brand. It just a brand. Just like Dell, Creative, and Microsoft.

EDIT: FYI- Foxconn makes iphones and zunes in the same factory. OH NOES DID STEVE STRIKE A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL TO HAVE *MY* iPhone MANUFACTURED IN *le gasp* A FACILITY WHERE MS HAS THEIR PRODUCT MANUFACTURED?

[KingYaba]

In Japan iPods are sold in 7-11s.

Don't say that. A few here may burst an artery. ;)

[hexonxonx]

I stopped in Wal-Mart just a few minutes ago. I was hoping to find a case for my 3G iPhone. No such luck there, no cases to be found. :(

I guess I'll try BestBuy later and if I have no luck there, it's the Apple store.

[j5045096]

The $99 will be for the iPhone Nano - hence AT&T not caring that Wal-Mart is selling the more expensive one... :eek:

I keep reading these supposed rumors about an iPhone nano. Is it just me or does the current iPhone seem like the *right* screen size? ...I wouldn't want it bigger or smaller, especially not like the size reduction that these concept drawings are showing.

I'm inclined to believe there is no Nano in the works.

[gkarris]

Brief encounter with the Wal-Mart iPhone display

http://www.cnet.com/8301-18603_1-10129336-73.html

The price tags on display gave both the new customer/upgrade price, as well as the full retail price. A small paper sign taped to the wall announced that iPhone sales would commence at 9:00 am, and that customers should line up for access to limited stock.

LINE UP EVERYONE, WAL-MART IS SELLING IPHONES! LOL...

asked a sales clerk about first-day sales, and she said as far as she knew they hadn't sold a single unit so far, "but maybe if they had started selling it before Christmas..."

Obviously... :rolleyes:

[Analog Kid]

Not everyone is a fatalist. It is possible to resist change that is not good for the whole of society. In other words, not all change is progress. It takes people with their minds switched on to discern the difference between the two. For some of us, going through life accepting the "inevitable" is not reasonable and is even harmful to society.
That makes the point far more succinctly than I'm going to be able to, so I just want to quote you up front.
People complained when tiny mom and pop groceries were replaced by supermarkets.Wanna go back?Didn't think so.Society and commerce changes.Rail against the inevitable if it makes you feel better,but beyond that,it does nothing.
Things change, that's true, and mom & pop groceries are one of the things I'd like back. Supermarkets jumped the shark when I needed a loyalty card to pay the shelf price. Railing rarely makes me feel good, but not railing is the sure way to make anything inevitable.
In Japan iPods are sold in 7-11s.

Get over yourselves elitists, its a product and there is no prestige involved in owning a glorified silicon board that is designed for entertainment purposes. Apple is not some exalted brand. It just a brand. Just like Dell, Creative, and Microsoft.
Ok, first-- have you ever been in a Japanese 7-11?!? Talk about quality service and a top notch buying experience...

Second, I've been seeing various versions of "elitist" and "snob" attached to this discussion, and I get the feeling it's this knee-jerk dismissive response. I've seen very few elitist comments in the thread, and most of those strike me as tongue-in-cheek. Can someone explain what in this discussion is elitist?

[gkarris]

Ok, first-- have you ever been in a Japanese 7-11?!? Talk about quality service and a top notch buying experience...

Definitely a "cultural" thing - which extends to the Honda and Toyota Dealers, and Sony Stores here in the USA... all good experiences. :D

[Shawn D]

I wonder if the employees know much about the phone even with the training..

[statik13]

The real truth is the snobs on this forum are nothing but kids 12-25 years old who don't have any financial responsibilities or responsibilities for that matter other than carrying their elitist snobby asses to school.
When they start having REAL financial responsibilities Wal-mart will start looking good when they need to buy underwear, socks and toiletries.

Elitist snob? Not true. It simply comes down to what you value. You obviously value the almighty dollar above anything else. Some of us value other thing more.

For me, the cost isn't worth the savings. Yes you save a few dollars on your food bill, but you spend a heck of a lot of time standing in lines, fighting for parking, browsing huge isles, getting questionable service and generally being frustrated and surrounded by other frustrated people. No thanks!

As for "REAL" financial responsibility, what does that have to do with shopping at Wal-Mart? If you managed to dig yourself into a hole where saving $1 on a pack of toilet paper becomes a life or death situation maybe it is time to re-evaluate your financial plans.

Back on topic: This is a double edged sword for Apple. Huge distribution channel, but Wal-mart is famous for going back to the manufactures and demanding that they reduce their sale price so that it can be rolled back without costing Wal-mart any money on their end. I think Apple is pretty safe in this case though as most of the revenue is actually tied up in the service charges and they have a product in enough demand that they can just say "No".

[Prof.]

Not to start another fight like I did in the last Wal-Mart iPhone thread but....

Looks like I'm not the only one (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/28421589#28421589) who thinks the average Wal-Mart shopper might not be able to afford the monthly iPhone bill.

[Toyota4Ever]

Is there some sort of advantage to buy it at Walmart?

I would imagine this will certainly kill the aura of "exclusivity"

As far as I'm concerned, it's a disadvantage. Sure, you save all two dollars (whoopdee do!) on an amazing phone, but Wal-Mart is making a profit on this. Why would you want to support such a greedy retailer? And you're right; it does kill (brutally murders, for that matter) the exclusivity of owning an iPhone...which is why i'll be clinging onto my first generation 16GB iPhone for a LOOONNNNGGG time.

[hexonxonx]

Not to start another fight like I did in the last Wal-Mart iPhone thread but....

Looks like I'm not the only one (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/28421589#28421589) who thinks the average Wal-Mart shopper might not be able to afford the monthly iPhone bill.
Who believed anything MSNBC has to say? Obviously those sites are just opinion and obviously wrong,

I went to wal-mart this morning to look for a case for my 3G iPhone and they had no cases.

[Sehnsucht]

Inferior ingredients. In the non Wal-Mart store you will get the same cereal that is fresher , crispier and lasts longer.

Bullsh*tter alert! :eek: Read: If you buy the Wal-Mart BRAND "Great Value", you get crap. If you move down two spaces on the shelf and buy Kellogg's or Post, you get the tasty stuff. Wal-Mart sells hundreds of quality name-brand items alongside the sh***y private-label stuff...as does every other major retailer/grocer. I mean, if it's really that big of a deal to you, check the barcode next time you're in a Wal-Mart. If the UPC code begins with 78742, it's a Wal-Mart brand. You're better off sticking with the UPCs that begin with 85909. :D :apple:

[JoeG4]

Too bad none of ya'll have ever stepped into a Neighborhood Market, they have those all over Vegas and they RAWK. Easily shorter lines than Vons/safeway/albertsons/smiths/food4less, comparable pricing and here's the REAL kicker:

BETTER SERVICE - I never thought I'd say that about a walmart (rarely have I been in a super center where I didn't have to wait behind 4-5 people in line).

That said, I was at a super center today getting my T-Mobile phones swapped out with 3G models, they had them free (no rebates) vs T-Mobile wanting $100 - 50 rebate.. can't complain!

The assistant was apologizing for "holding me up so long" (15 minutes in all?) because, and you'll never guess this:

The demand for the iPhone at walmart is more than they had anticipated, so much more that it was overloading their system.

Whodathunkit? I sure as hell didn't expect a lame duck phone to be overloading a store's sales system XD

While we were getting that ironed out, I'd say a half dozen people came by intending to buy one, soo there.

Maybe people are getting sick of Apple's business practices (crowded stores that are hard to breathe in and lousy genius bar service). :P

[j5045096]

If you managed to dig yourself into a hole where saving $1 on a pack of toilet paper becomes a life or death situation maybe it is time to re-evaluate your financial plans.


Wow. Really? Wow guy.

[pilotError]

The demand for the iPhone at walmart is more than they had anticipated, so much more that it was overloading their system.

Whodathunkit? I sure as hell didn't expect a lame duck phone to be overloading a store's sales system XD

While we were getting that ironed out, I'd say a half dozen people came by intending to buy one, soo there.


I thought they only had a limited stock to begin with? Wasn't it like 5 phones per store or some rediculous number?

[nrmillions]

How is it an exclusive prestigious thing to own an iPhone? Its not a $250,000 Ferrari. It only costs less than $200 and any kid making minimum wage at McDonalds could easily buy one. Could anyone making minimum wage go out and buy a Ferrari? Even a Xbox 360 costs more than an iPhone. My iPhone plan is around $75 a month which isnt crazy either. I wouldnt even call an apple computer an elite product unless you call items that start at $599 elite. Do you think someone who uses an iPhone is richer than someone who doesnt? Almost every kid I know has an iPhone now. iPhone isnt even close to being the most expensive phone out there either.

People are saying Walmart employees are uneducated highschool dropouts so what do you think the regular apple salespeople are? You think they have PhD's or something to be a cashier? I know several people who used to work in an Apple store and those same people also worked at places like Wal-Mart and Target.

Apple products are not 100% made in the USA. I dont see how Wal-Mart is any different from Apple. They are both greedy corporations who only care about making money off of people and both get products from China. Apple isnt a non-profit company that gives all its money to charity.

Obviously Apple and AT&T can get more phones out there by selling the iPhone at Wal-Mart just like Apple has done with the iPod.

[gkarris]

My iPhone plan is around $75 a month which isnt crazy either.

I try to buy everything cheap such as close-outs, used, and refurbs, and on my income, $75/month for cellular service is crazy...

I'm on T-Mobile right now with 1000 minutes, free nights/weekends, 400 texts, and unlimited EDGE data for $51/month, and I cringed at that (I used to have voice only at $39/month, but everyone texts nowadays and the iPhone is a lot more useful with a data plan).

Good for Wal-Mart, sounds like they just want the prestige of selling the iPhone. Whether or not anyone buys from them, that's a whole other story.

Maybe just a lead-in to the iPhone Nano? But I speculate that it will be just a smaller, 4 Gig, $99 phone with the same expensive AT&T plan (hope I'm wrong on that).

[3.1416]

Things change, that's true, and mom & pop groceries are one of the things I'd like back.So open one. If there's really such a strong demand, it should be very profitable. Except that there probably isn't; people say they like mom and pop stores, just like they say there's too much violence on TV. But when you look at what they actually do, they go for wide selection and low prices and explosions.

Supermarkets jumped the shark when I needed a loyalty card to pay the shelf price. Railing rarely makes me feel good, but not railing is the sure way to make anything inevitable.Yeah, loyalty cards are obnoxious. Give them bogus data or swap them around.

Second, I've been seeing various versions of "elitist" and "snob" attached to this discussion, and I get the feeling it's this knee-jerk dismissive response. I've seen very few elitist comments in the thread, and most of those strike me as tongue-in-cheek. Can someone explain what in this discussion is elitist?"Elitist" may not be the best word, but many people seem to think that their preferences are universally correct, and anyone who chooses to pay less for products of possibly lower quality is objectively wrong. Like the $1 toilet paper quip; if you're in a poor family trying to make ends meet, saving $10 per weekly shopping trip can make a big difference.

[JoeG4]

I try to buy everything cheap such as close-outs, used, and refurbs, and on my income, $75/month for cellular service is crazy...

I'm on T-Mobile right now with 1000 minutes, free nights/weekends, 400 texts, and unlimited EDGE data for $51/month, and I cringed at that (I used to have voice only at $39/month, but everyone texts nowadays and the iPhone is a lot more useful with a data plan).


I have T-Mobile for the exact same reason!

2 phones, 700 minutes = $70 a month. I'm actually planning to add our home phone to the service as well ($10 a month vs the $30 I currently pay vonage).. The added bonus? It counts as a T-Mobile line so it falls under unlimited mobile to mobile XD

With the vast majority of my minutes available, I'd be out of my mind to waste my time with "txt msg plox", and why would I?! I can't stand that form of WAPanese.

When I get the chance, I may blow $400 on an iPhone + the ETF from AT&T, we'll have to see.

[Analog Kid]

Thanks for a civil, reasoned response. There have been way too many of the other kind...
"Elitist" may not be the best word, but many people seem to think that their preferences are universally correct, and anyone who chooses to pay less for products of possibly lower quality is objectively wrong. Like the $1 toilet paper quip; if you're in a poor family trying to make ends meet, saving $10 per weekly shopping trip can make a big difference.
Does that make it equally elitist to be arguing as objective truths that Walmart is inevitable, or unions are evil? I don't see elitist attached to those arguments.

As far as needing to save a buck here and there, I think there's a difference between thinking tactically and thinking strategically. Saving $10 a week is tactical thinking-- how do I make it to my next paycheck. That's important, but answering that question alone dooms you to ask it again next week. Asking how communities get to a place where that $10 is so important to so many people, and how we might get out of that situation is strategic thinking. While it isn't possible to survive thinking only strategically, it is possible to survive thinking only tactically, though sub-optimally. What we need is a mix of thought, as individuals and as a society, about what strategic decisions we're going to make. Strategic thinking isn't something that only the "elites" are capable of, and the tactical choice that advances your strategy doesn't have to come at a greater cost-- in many cases it can be the less costly short term answer as well as the better long term answer.

While there's an argument to be made that some people are too worried about today to think about tomorrow, I don't think it's a strong argument. The reason this whole argument is relevant to this thread is that it is typically the more affluent who have the luxury to not only make small strategic decisions, but also to use their wealth to effect change. They can choose tactics of higher cost. They can afford the extra $2 on the cost of their iPhone. The people who need to worry about saving $10 on their weekly bill aren't buying iPhones.

So open one. If there's really such a strong demand, it should be very profitable. Except that there probably isn't; people say they like mom and pop stores, just like they say there's too much violence on TV. But when you look at what they actually do, they go for wide selection and low prices and explosions.

Yeah, loyalty cards are obnoxious. Give them bogus data or swap them around.
I happen to live in an area where the supermarket closed and the two mom and pop groceries survived. Which is a good thing, because I frankly don't have the talents to run a grocery. Part of speaking out about one's opinions is to make it clear to others that there is a market there-- I can't be the one to open every alternative business, but by adding my voice to the chorus saying they'd like an alternative to Walmart, someone else can.

[j5045096]

It only costs less than $200 and any kid making minimum wage at McDonalds could easily buy one. Could anyone making minimum wage go out and buy a Ferrari? Even a Xbox 360 costs more than an iPhone. Do you think someone who uses an iPhone is richer than someone who doesnt? Almost every kid I know has an iPhone now.

This is true - at least the 3G iPhone was a little cheaper. I remember seeing 15 and 16 year old kids walking around with the original iPhone during the first few weeks it was launched. That means they had a $500-600 phone in their hands (at that time), which I thought was crazy because how many times do you see teenage girls pull out their pink Motorola Razor that has little sparkle gems up and down the whole outside of it yet has a broken screen, hinge, key, plate etc. because they drop it every time they pull it out of their pocket! I thought it was funny actually, because you almost knew what was coming--kinda like when the Wii came out and people were shattering tv screens by not using the hand strap!

Nevertheless, I would get all self-righteous at 27 and say "what do these kids need an iPhone for" and tell you that I use mine as a business tool and rarely for entertainment/music/games...I would tell you that as I played Word Warp a good 2 hours yesterday, but when I was 15 and 16 years old I used money from an after school job and signed up for my first cell phone with Sprint PCS...and I didn't get the free piece of garbage they were offering from Audiovox or Kyocera or Qualcomm, I bought the Motorola StarTAC -- which was the "elite phone" of it's day. And did I need a cell phone? No way. If I did my parents would have gotten me one. Instead, they let me take theirs if I went out at night and it was for emergencies (75 minutes for probably about $59.99 - thanks BellSouth Mobility!)

None of us "need" an iPhone. We can live without our iPhones. We can do business without our iPhones. We can even be, dare I say it, productive without our iPhones. So I guess I have no right to say to some kid: "why the heck do you have an iPhone--you don't need it". That motivation would be solely out of jealousy which never does anyone any good. If I had a teenager right now he/she definitely wouldn't have one though...though my 2 year old daughter loves to see Daddy play Fieldrunners.

[hankolerd]

Sounds like alot of people are haters of wal-mart selling the iphone. My wife works at a wal-mart, and I think it is awesome, since she can get a 10%($30) discount on the 16gb iPhone, and a 15% discount on the service plan. :apple:

[pilotError]

So whats the deal? Can you pay cash for the iPhone in Walmart?

Do you have to activate in-store?

[statik13]

"Elitist" may not be the best word, but many people seem to think that their preferences are universally correct, and anyone who chooses to pay less for products of possibly lower quality is objectively wrong. Like the $1 toilet paper quip; if you're in a poor family trying to make ends meet, saving $10 per weekly shopping trip can make a big difference.

That quip would be mine.

I apologize for the poor choice of words. In all fairness, you are taking that way out of context. It was never meant to belittle poorer families. It was meant to point out the absurdity of claiming that all it takes to be fiscally responsible is to shop at Wal-Mart, all while being able to justify buying a $198 phone with a $65 monthly contract.


What it comes down to is, shop at Wal-Mart, don't shop at Wal-Mart. Just try to be aware of the results of your actions.


You save on the monthly grocery bill (or $2 on an iPhone)
You are supporting Wal-Mart’s questionable labour practices & employee treatment
Wal-Mart refusing to pay higher prices to suppliers helps keep inflation down
You are supporting Wal-Mart’s unethical treatment and bullying of suppliers.
The constant push for lower prices leads to suppliers changing the way they do things. Some are good, some bad. (Good = reduced waste, Bad = cutting employees wages, reducing quality or outsourcing to meet Wal-Mart’s demands)
Brings more products to smaller towns
Leads to the death of mom & pop shops and the loss of choice in smaller towns.
Leads to the loss of identity of small towns.
Shopping in the suburbs encourages urban sprawl and the death of downtowns in big cities.
Placement of stores in the outskirts of cities means more reliance on cars to get there, higher infrastructure costs for cities(more taxes for everybody), less availability of bussing, more traffic in the suburbs.
For small communities and big cities, every dollar profit the store makes gets shipped back to the Walton’s, instead of staying in the local community .
You are ultimately giving more power to the most powerful company in the world instead of helping the little guy.

[statik13]

As far as needing to save a buck here and there, I think there's a difference between thinking tactically and thinking strategically. Saving $10 a week is tactical thinking-- how do I make it to my next paycheck. That's important, but answering that question alone dooms you to ask it again next week. Asking how communities get to a place where that $10 is so important to so many people, and how we might get out of that situation is strategic thinking.
Very well said.


While there's an argument to be made that some people are too worried about today to think about tomorrow, I don't think it's a strong argument. The reason this whole argument is relevant to this thread is that it is typically the more affluent who have the luxury to not only make small strategic decisions, but also to use their wealth to effect change. They can choose tactics of higher cost. They can afford the extra $2 on the cost of their iPhone. The people who need to worry about saving $10 on their weekly bill aren't buying iPhones.

And again, some great insight.

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” - Mahatma Gandhi

[rowr]

Things change, that's true, and mom & pop groceries are one of the things I'd like back.

I live in the capital of Mom & Pop stores (just a little west of Boston) and I can't stand them. The mom'n'pop places never have what I want, the miniscule selection they do have is very limited and the prices are insane. There's nothing romantic about limited variety. Fortunately there are a few Walmart/CVS/Walgreens within reasonable driving distance so I can get the stuff I want. I bought a big jug of laundry detergent at Walmart in Hudson, MA yesterday. It was $11. The same jug in West Concord is $19 and in Acton it is $17.

If you're single, renting an apartment and have few living expenses it's easy to justify the additional cost of visiting your local corner grocery store but there's a lot of people out there who have a family that need to save money. It's immature to belittle Walmart.


There are more people who are apt to see an Apple product in a Wal-Mart than to see an Apple product in an Apple store (count the number of Apple stores and compare that to the number of Walmart stores). It is a good thing that Apple decided to make their products available to people who didn't even know Apple stores exist.

[rowr]

it is typically the more affluent who have the luxury to not only make small strategic decisions, but also to use their wealth to effect change.

A fool and his money are soon parted.

They can choose tactics of higher cost.

People have made strategic decisions to create change - there are more Walmart stores as a result of their purchasing choices :-)

[Analog Kid]

I bought a big jug of laundry detergent at Walmart in Hudson, MA yesterday. It was $11. The same jug in West Concord is $19 and in Acton it is $17.
You also drove 20 miles and spent half and hour or so of your time to get there. Not everything is accounted for in straight price comparisons.
If you're single, renting an apartment and have few living expenses it's easy to justify the additional cost of visiting your local corner grocery store but there's a lot of people out there who have a family that need to save money. It's immature to belittle Walmart.
It's immature to call people you don't know immature. You're making a lot of assumptions about who it is that dislikes where the Walmarts of the world are taking us. Having kids actually makes the argument more poignant.
There are more people who are apt to see an Apple product in a Wal-Mart than to see an Apple product in an Apple store (count the number of Apple stores and compare that to the number of Walmart stores). It is a good thing that Apple decided to make their products available to people who didn't even know Apple stores exist.
There are plenty of AT&T stores, and I don't think Apple is having any trouble with people knowing iPhone exists.
A fool and his money are soon parted.
Exactly. The argument here, however, is the mechanism of that parting. Fools don't realize that they're losing more by saving a buck on corn flakes.
People have made strategic decisions to create change - there are more Walmart stores as a result of their purchasing choices :-)
Made the decision, or had it made for them. Based on your argument though, people should decide on Walmart just because other people do, not because it makes any kind of sense. Besides, this competition argument kind of ignores the fact that most of these Walmarts are heavily government subsidized through tax breaks and land deals.

[Patcoola]

i can see this as a American thing, never in Canada

[andreab35]

I went to the Salem Walmart today do get some shopping done.
Outside, there are 5 bars of 3G. Inside, I know it's very spotty and near to no bars.
With my 1st gen, I'd never get service except for some spots at the front of the store.
So today, it was my first time with my own 3G in Walmart. Service was a bit better in parts of the store, but I still got spotty.
I went to the back of the stores to go see the 3Gs, and them too, had no service, as well as my own phone.
What a great way to show off an awesome device.
I'd suggest to them- if they move the iPhone 3G to the supermarket part of Walmart, they'd get 3 bars of 3G over there. :D

[powers74]

Where else can you get a bag of rubber bands at three in the morning?

[tjmrpm04]

*AND the salespeople won't know what they are talking about!

Ahhh yes, like the genius' at AT&T.

Me to AT&T: Can I return my recalled AC adapter here or do I need to go to an Apple Store
AT&T to me: There are no recalls on the iPhone or it's adapter.


Now on a different AT&T store:

Me to AT&T: Can I use my old BlueTooth (gave model number) Head Set on the 3G or is it not supported?
AT&T to me: The 3G has WiFi but no BlueTooth.


Gotta love well trained salespeople.

[NewsAndHistory]

The iPhone seems to be 1 of the few products not made by tortured children, slaves, and other oppressed foreigners that Walmart sells, these days.

[xbjllb]

The iPhone seems to be 1 of the few products not made by tortured children, slaves, and other oppressed foreigners that Walmart sells, these days.

Who gave you that idea? You mean it's NOT made in China like all of Apple's other products?

:apple:

[Quillz]

The iPhone seems to be 1 of the few products not made by tortured children, slaves, and other oppressed foreigners that Walmart sells, these days.
It seems to be, and yet I doubt it. It's made in China, which isn't exactly known for adhering to strict working laws.