Apple ProCare

(Grumble) Something a bit Microsoft-onian about this.
I guess Steve really meant it when he said that the free ride was over.

Can't you already Test-drive their hardware in the store? I am pretty sure I do that everytime I walk in. And I am also sure that if I buy something there, I leave with it that same day....

not already offered?

From looking at the "features" it seems like this just a way to collect MORE money from customers. All these options are already currently available via apple care. The difference is you do this at the store instead of over the phone.

PLUS, I thought if you had applecare all these options were already available. I thought you could bring your mac in with apple care and they'd fix any problem you had. ie. email settings, help copy files, etc..

I dunno, this seems very odd to me. Anyone else?

april fool

What a horrible idea...
I (maybe)like rapid repairs for professionals... but other than that there is no value whatsoever...

"Price Guarantee. If you see Apple products for less at another store, don’t worry. We’ll match the price. "
huh? Is apple the only store in america that would make you PAY a membership to not have to pay a lslightly higher price?

"Test-Drive. Try all of the latest Apple hardware in our store, before you buy. "
are you going to have to slide your card in to try a computer now or something?

Cart before the horse.. ProCare, but where are the pro machines?

This is a way to dupe people into forking over more money to Apple for things they can easily do themselves.

Wouldn't it be nice if computer hardware was generating money at Apple? Dare to dream.

AppleCare is Different

ryanw said:

From looking at the "features" it seems like this just a way to collect MORE money from customers. All these options are already currently available via apple care. The difference is you do this at the store instead of over the phone.

PLUS, I thought if you had applecare all these options were already available. I thought you could bring your mac in with apple care and they'd fix any problem you had. ie. email settings, help copy files, etc..

I dunno, this seems very odd to me. Anyone else?

Click to expand...

I currently work for an Apple reseller and i think that this is an excellent idea that we should adapt. Applecare covers hardware issues, and phone support with software issues. We are constantly having to give free technical support to customers because they think that they deserve it, if we could have a specific membership like this it would be great for the store, and allow us to make money in these times of low margins. Last week i spent over 45 mins on the phone with some woman trying to help her out with GraphicConverter because her 'friend' bought an iMac from our store (not from me) and she 'might' be buying one from us.

Boy, that would be great for driving sales, right? "Here's these nice machines.. Like 'em? Now go pay $99 for the priviledge to try out one of our outdated hotplates."

merge said:

What a horrible idea...

"Test-Drive. Try all of the latest Apple hardware in our store, before you buy. "
are you going to have to slide your card in to try a computer now or something?

Click to expand...

# Rapid Repairs. Get priority, next-day turnaround on in-store repairs.

Okay I guess that's nice. I would hope you wouldn't have to use this too often.

# Reserve a Genius. No waiting at our Genius Bar with up to seven-day advance reservations.

Again... not used too often I wouldn't think.

# Complete setup. We’ll transfer your old files and get you ready to roll before you leave the store.

I would think they'd do this for a fee with a new Mac, not a $99 subscription type thing.

# Custom workshops. Book free, one-hour workshops to take your skills further.

Might be nice once they let us know what's in store.

# Exclusive discounts. Get special discounts on selected Apple and third-party products.

Sorta like the .Mac discounts?

# Test-Drive. Try all of the latest Apple hardware in our store, before you buy.

Can't I do this already?

# Price Guarantee. If you see Apple products for less at another store, don’t worry. We’ll match the price.

Because every other store sells Apple products $5 cheaper! *yawn*

# Take It Home Today. Purchase any Mac, software, or accessory from our store inventory and take it with you today.

So if I don't have a pro care card I have to wait for my Mac like I'd have to if I bought a gun?

# My Mac. Let us help you personalize your new Mac by setting up your email and Internet account, installing software, connecting peripherals and more.

My grandmother could set up a Mac. C'mon.

# Genius Bar. Get hands-on support from a Mac Genius during store hours.

Isn't this the same as reserving one? Don't they already do this? Or are they going to snub me now?

Extended Warrany.. How Can I Lose?!?

This smacks of the extended warranty sludge they push on you at circuit city and the like. Meaningless piece of paper (snazzy black card) that offers you little to no benefit and is intended to be a pure for profit model.

They'll get old ladies and newbies to buy the "Fantastic ProCard!!!" and they'll never use it. $99 for Apple..

This is so skuzzy..

Another of those offers that (like .Mac) are absolutely no use for a seasoned Mac-User like me *sigh*. OK, I know, I don't need to use it, but I feel Apple is investing more and more resources in stuff that will never be useful for me.

Set up my Mac? Yeah right, I desperately need someone who enters my username...

Wait. Am I understanding this right? On top of the anywhere from $170 to $350 apple care they now think they can screw/extort/pillage/[insert some other form of dicking here.] their customers over with this "supposed" preferential treatment. Which in reality probably isn't.

Wow. Being an Apple user is looking more and more enticing by the moment. What next? Apple care with and without free shipping? Apple Care + with frayed wire service? (A $100 value yours for only $59!!)

Why do I get this image of Jobs dressed in a white pinstriped suit with a flat tophat in a wagon that rolled into bumsville Idaho selling Steve's magic elixir! Guaranteed to cure you of all your aches and pains! Increase your libido 100 fold! Will feed a family of four for 6 months! All yours for the amazing low price of $99!!
NOT!

So what if I don't have AppleCare and my machine is 2.5 years old? Could I buy 1 year of this and then my machine is covered for repairs? Or do I need a warranty before I can even buy ProCare?

Great New Apple Serivice!!

Say hello to iBilk

tgranbois said:

I currently work for an Apple reseller and i think that this is an excellent idea that we should adapt. Applecare covers hardware issues, and phone support with software issues. We are constantly having to give free technical support to customers because they think that they deserve it, if we could have a specific membership like this it would be great for the store, and allow us to make money in these times of low margins. Last week i spent over 45 mins on the phone with some woman trying to help her out with GraphicConverter because her 'friend' bought an iMac from our store (not from me) and she 'might' be buying one from us.

Click to expand...

Ok, so how are you going to handle things when people come in with problems that do not own "ProCare"? Are you going to turn then away and "snub" your customers that have purchased products by you and say, "Sorry, do you have ProCare? I can't help you.." ??? This seems horrible to me.

Isnt it a sort of alternative to Applecare. Instead of being supported over the phone and sending your Mac by courier for a several hundred dollars fee, you pay $99 to take your Mac in to a store for attention ahead of Joe schmoe. Like most services, there are aspects that wont appeal to power users, but the Mac is all about computing made easy. This seems to be an attempt at trying to reassure people to switch.

Some_Big_Spoon said:

Cart before the horse.. ProCare, but where are the pro machines?
.

Click to expand...

I agree. Why not worry about putting out some new equipment before you offer ways to care for it.

I'm thinking that the whole test-driving the hardware might mean you get to bring home a computer for a week or so. Of course they hold onto your credit card or whatever. I don't know, just a guess.

tgranbois said:

I currently work for an Apple reseller and i think that this is an excellent idea that we should adapt. Applecare covers hardware issues, and phone support with software issues. We are constantly having to give free technical support to customers because they think that they deserve it, if we could have a specific membership like this it would be great for the store, and allow us to make money in these times of low margins. Last week i spent over 45 mins on the phone with some woman trying to help her out with GraphicConverter because her 'friend' bought an iMac from our store (not from me) and she 'might' be buying one from us.

Click to expand...

You do realize that by snubbing people that come in off the street looking for advice you could very easily push potential and future customers away, right? Example. I have a Linksys router that I was desperately trying to get to work with several friends iBooks. After talking to one of the " geniuses" I narrowed the problem down drastically. They didn't solve it but they helped. If this is going to be the attitude of Apple stores, where typically the average person goes to get help, I would say screw apple. I mean PC users are a dime a dozen. I help people every day with their computers. I see people seeking advice at Best Buy all their time with their home systems. If Apple is going to be an *** about handing out, at least a little, advice screw them.
Now if we are talking about someone who is walking in off the street with their PowerMac, hands it to the resident genius, and says fix it that's a different situation. Sorry but IMHO this bites the big one. In this case the big one being the consumers butt.

dynamicd said:

I'm thinking that the whole test-driving the hardware might mean you get to bring home a computer for a week or so. Of course they hold onto your credit card or whatever. I don't know, just a guess.

Click to expand...

THAT would be cool. But if that was the case why the "in our store"?

I don't understand

Why is everyone opposed to this? Does it take the place of Applecare or anything? What are we loosing that is currently free? Thanks

Some_Big_Spoon said:

This smacks of the extended warranty sludge they push on you at circuit city and the like. Meaningless piece of paper (snazzy black card) that offers you little to no benefit and is intended to be a pure for profit model.

They'll get old ladies and newbies to buy the "Fantastic ProCard!!!" and they'll never use it. $99 for Apple..

This is so skuzzy..

Click to expand...

I wonder if this is to replace AppleCare or addition to AppleCare? So when you buy a mac you get suggested to pay an additional $200+ for applecare, $99 for procare, and $99 for .Mac. Any other things that they are to suggest people buy? This are all services that Apple customers have loved over the years for free, and now they're slowly getting replaced by having to pay for it. Now that's all great. People should get what they pay for. But these are all things that would help me explain to friends why they should buy a $1200 iMac instead of a $500 eMachine or dell, or whatever. Of course everyone on this forum likes macs for other reasons, but it's hard to get PC people to look at more expensive hardware unless there are lots of free perks. Of course iLife helps, but I don't know... just seems like Apple is trying to go the more PC route with standard support options, but still charging Apple Prices for hardware.

It's called fooling the newbies and milking the faithful, neither is any kind of long term business plan.

You've just summed up Apple's rapidly shrinking market share problem quite nicely.

Many, many of us pay a huge premium (on hardware) to use the OS. If OSX ran on anything else, you know that Apple's hardware sales would tank, and tank in a spectacular fashion. They've got us loceked in, those that choose to stay for whatever reason.

Unless they're getting out of the computer business, Apple's got to do something about the hardware problem.

ryanw said:

I wonder if this is to replace AppleCare or addition to AppleCare? So when you buy a mac you get suggested to pay an additional $200+ for applecare, $99 for procare, and $99 for .Mac. Any other things that they are to suggest people buy? This are all services that Apple customers have loved over the years for free, and now they're slowly getting replaced by having to pay for it. Now that's all great. People should get what they pay for. But these are all things that would help me explain to friends why they should buy a $1200 iMac instead of a $500 eMachine or dell, or whatever. Of course everyone on this forum likes macs for other reasons, but it's hard to get PC people to look at more expensive hardware unless there are lots of free perks. Of course iLife helps, but I don't know... just seems like Apple is trying to go the more PC route with standard support options, but still charging Apple Prices for hardware.

Click to expand...

Some_Big_Spoon said:

Boy, that would be great for driving sales, right? "Here's these nice machines.. Like 'em? Now go pay $99 for the priviledge to try out one of our outdated hotplates."

Click to expand...

Um, maybe they mean carry a trial laptop around/out of of the store for a while and really "test drive it?" Maybe exclusive try outs where others don't have to wait behind you...