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zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
Hello,

Soon a friend is going to New York and I would like to buy the new MacbookAir but with a french keyboard. In order to pay, since I can't use with my french credit card, I want to go to a french Apple Store and charge an Apple Gift Card with the MBA price, but how to ship? Is it possible to ship the MBA to his hotel? Or is it true that sometimes at the Apple Store on 5th Avenue they already have some macbook with different keyboard? thank you!
 

crzdcolombian

macrumors 6502a
Nov 16, 2010
806
160
Hello,

Soon a friend is going to New York and I would like to buy the new MacbookAir but with a french keyboard. In order to pay, since I can't use with my french credit card, I want to go to a french Apple Store and charge an Apple Gift Card with the MBA price, but how to ship? Is it possible to ship the MBA to his hotel? Or is it true that sometimes at the Apple Store on 5th Avenue they already have some macbook with different keyboard? thank you!

very much doubt it. The problem is it's a huge risk with identity theft. I think the credit card company would reject the sale
 

ColdFlame87

macrumors regular
Jul 23, 2004
175
0
Woodland Hills, CA
What he means is that if the billing address does not match the address the credit card company has on its system it will reject the purchase. This is especially true if the address is a hotel.
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
What he means is that if the billing address does not match the address the credit card company has on its system it will reject the purchase. This is especially true if the address is a hotel.

I will pay by apple gift card!
 

crzdcolombian

macrumors 6502a
Nov 16, 2010
806
160
I will pay by apple gift card!

best bet is just buy one from apple then buy a french keyboard protector. My parents did that with their iMac they got a spanish one. Maybe you can go to Canada that isn't too far and just get one :) not too many french speakers in the US.
 

Macky-Mac

macrumors 68040
May 18, 2004
3,489
2,531
you can order one with a french keyboard from the online store and have it shipped to the Apple store where your friend can get it.........you'd want to verify how long it will take so it's ready when your friend is in NY. I don't know how long they'll hold the package for him, so you'd want to verify that too. And if you're buying the gift card with euros, you'll want to first check to see if the USA online store will accept a gift card loaded in euros.
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
you'll want to first check to see if the USA online store will accept a gift card loaded in euros.

thank you, I didn't think about that... Just asked and it is impossible to use a gift card in euro... Otherwise, is there any other way to buy on the USA a macbook with a different keyboard? Not from apple store...
 

sjinsjca

macrumors 68020
Oct 30, 2008
2,238
555
I have purchased an expensive laptop when traveling and had it shipped to my hotel before.

The credit-card company pitched a bitch and needed to be contacted and reassured, but that only took ten minutes or so.

So the process depends on the credit-card company. Is ship-to-store a possibility that might be easier? You would have to be present when it's picked up, then, but the credit-card company might be more relaxed about it.
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
I have purchased an expensive laptop when traveling and had it shipped to my hotel before.

The credit-card company pitched a bitch and needed to be contacted and reassured, but that only took ten minutes or so.

So the process depends on the credit-card company. Is ship-to-store a possibility that might be easier? You would have to be present when it's picked up, then, but the credit-card company might be more relaxed about it.

the problem is that my friend stay there some days and has no time to go to an apple store (and I don't want to bother him that much...) :(
 

sjinsjca

macrumors 68020
Oct 30, 2008
2,238
555
the problem is that my friend stay there some days and has no time to go to an apple store (and I don't want to bother him that much...) :(

Well, then, maybe your best option is to try making the purchase and see what happens. Or call the credit-card company for guidance.

In my case, whatever vendor I was dealing with at the time (it wasn't Apple-- this was in my dark days of using Windows!) said they couldn't ship until I called the credit-card company and proved to them the address was legitimate. This wasn't a big deal-- the whole process took perhaps ten minutes. My memory is dim but I seem to recall having to fax something to the credit-card company, which meant a trip to the hotel's front desk to use their fax machine.

Then again, the computer was being delivered to me at my hotel, not some third-party recipient. That might represent a complication.

Much depends on the credit-card company you're working with, their policies, and their procedures. There's not much advice that we can offer you here.
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
But wait, what is the problem with paying on the us apple store with a french credit card, I though the problem was done by apple that doesn't want foreigners to buy things at a lower price because of convertion, instead of a problem of my bank...
 

brentsg

macrumors 68040
Oct 15, 2008
3,578
936
Pretty sure if I dial up an Apple store in France and try to buy a Mac Pro, either of my credit card companies will laugh at me.
 

NP9

macrumors newbie
Sep 21, 2013
24
0
Zirosky, I am more of the reading kind at these kind of forums but I decided to register just to reply your thread since you have only received speculations up to now.

I do not live in the USA but I do travel very often there either for business purposes or for vacations.
In the past years I have purchased several MacBooks from the Apple US Online Store in order to select them with the Spanish keyboard layout. I purchased them about a week before I travelled and chose my hotel as the delivery address (most of the times in NY). In order to pay for this, I always did it with my non-US credit card.

Although you will notice that Apple's payment page won't let you change or select other country for your credit card, you just leave the US option and what I do is clarify the situation in the "City" box.

So if you for example live in Paris, you would put "Paris, France" in the "City" box. As for the "State" I just select randomly.
I do put my real address and door number in the "Address" box of course.
You will notice the "Telephone" will need to be a US one, so I just put my hotel's phone.

If you have any other doubt just ask.
I've done this several times and every single one of them I got my MacBooks without any hassles.

Regards
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
Zirosky, I am more of the reading kind at these kind of forums but I decided to register just to reply your thread since you have only received speculations up to now.

I do not live in the USA but I do travel very often there either for business purposes or for vacations.
In the past years I have purchased several MacBooks from the Apple US Online Store in order to select them with the Spanish keyboard layout. I purchased them about a week before I travelled and chose my hotel as the delivery address (most of the times in NY). In order to pay for this, I always did it with my non-US credit card.

Although you will notice that Apple's payment page won't let you change or select other country for your credit card, you just leave the US option and what I do is clarify the situation in the "City" box.

So if you for example live in Paris, you would put "Paris, France" in the "City" box. As for the "State" I just select randomly.
I do put my real address and door number in the "Address" box of course.
You will notice the "Telephone" will need to be a US one, so I just put my hotel's phone.

If you have any other doubt just ask.
I've done this several times and every single one of them I got my MacBooks without any hassles.

Regards

Your payment authorization failed. Please verify your information and try again, or try another payment method.

it doesnt work for me! :( Are you able to make a screenshot as an exemple with a street?! Please help me as soon as possible because the shipping date right now is the last day my friend stays in the Usa! thank you very much!
 
Last edited:

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
Hello,

Soon a friend is going to New York and I would like to buy the new MacbookAir but with a french keyboard. In order to pay, since I can't use with my french credit card, I want to go to a french Apple Store and charge an Apple Gift Card with the MBA price, but how to ship? Is it possible to ship the MBA to his hotel? Or is it true that sometimes at the Apple Store on 5th Avenue they already have some macbook with different keyboard? thank you!

I believe you need first to let your credit card company know that you're abroad and will need to make some purchases. You'll lose with conversion, obviously, but will be able to go in a brick-and-mortar store and usually be able to purchase what you want. There's an auto-blocking security mechanism when purchases are made outside your country or even city, but all credit cards companies do allow for exceptions. Just phone them. I did it on my last trip two years ago in Paris with a canadian card. No issue.

Not sure how it's done when you want to order online, though.

As to ordering a different keyboard layout, I can tell from the US Apple Store that it seems to be a non-issue: French keyboards are available. Maybe they don't hold it in store, but if the delivery can be made to the store, your issue is solved. In the past, Apple didn't allow for delivering to the store, and didn't provide much, if any, choice of layouts.
 

NP9

macrumors newbie
Sep 21, 2013
24
0
Your payment authorization failed. Please verify your information and try again, or try another payment method.

it doesnt work for me! :( Are you able to make a screenshot as an exemple with a street?! Please help me as soon as possible because the shipping date right now is the last day my friend stays in the Usa! thank you very much!

Hmmm can't figure out what went wrong with your payment, maybe you haven't used that specific card internationally yet?

In the billing address, did you put your real one?
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
I believe you need first to let your credit card company know that you're abroad and will need to make some purchases.

Just called my bank and they don't know why it doesn't work... I have money on the account, no restrictions with my Visa credit card... I don't know... I have to give up :(

----------

So if you for example live in Paris, you would put "Paris, France" in the "City" box. As for the "State" I just select randomly.
I do put my real address and door number in the "Address" box of course.
You will notice the "Telephone" will need to be a US one, so I just put my hotel's phone.

If you have any other doubt just ask.
I've done this several times and every single one of them I got my MacBooks without any hassles.

What did you put for the ZIP code? Yours or one random as the us state? Do you login as a guest (I do)?
 
Last edited:

NP9

macrumors newbie
Sep 21, 2013
24
0
What did you put for the ZIP code? Yours or one random as the us state? Do you login as a guest (I do)?

I did check out as a guest. As for the billing zip code I put my real one.
If it changes anything, my card used for these purchases was a VISA.
 

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
Just called my bank and they don't know why it doesn't work... I have money on the account, no restrictions with my Visa credit card... I don't know... I have to give up :(

French banks for some reason employ among the most incompetent of people. As living example, they don't know how to make an international money transfer, such a simple operation. It failed countless number of times when I was doing business with people abroad. So I would only be half-surprised if they didn't find their way to remove foreign purchases card usage restrictions.

Maybe it has to do with the IP your computer has? If it's non-US, then transaction will be refused?
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
I did check out as a guest. As for the billing zip code I put my real one.
If it changes anything, my card used for these purchases was a VISA.

So I don't know what can be the problem :(
 

zirosky

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 14, 2012
149
10
is this right? (Obviously this is an exemple not my real data)

0uj6.png
 

Cubytus

macrumors 65816
Mar 2, 2007
1,436
18
If it doesn't work try to include +33 for your phone number. Otherwise I don't expect it to work since the State if obviously not California.
 
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