Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
'Apple Store' App for iOS Updated to Support New Self-Checkout System for Retail Stores
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I'm going to test and see if the apple security system actually works. If a alarm goes off I'll just say this is the first time I must have done it wrong. I was always puzzled at the lack of security at apple stores.
I once was at J&R electronics store in downtown manhattan even though they had the security towers and security guards I somehow managed to walk out the store with an item in hand. No alarm went off and no security guard even noticed even though it was with no bag or receipt. (Wasn't my fault though, got into a small argument with my girlfriend and she walked out with me following. I didn't realize it was still in my hand until I was 5 minutes away from the store.) Ended up giving it back though
I once was at J&R electronics store in downtown manhattan even though they had the security towers and security guards I somehow managed to walk out the store with an item in hand. No alarm went off and no security guard even noticed even though it was with no bag or receipt. (Wasn't my fault though, got into a small argument with my girlfriend and she walked out with me following. I didn't realize it was still in my hand until I was 5 minutes away from the store.) Ended up giving it back though
Last edited:
That is a brilliant strategy. Make sure you have your attorney's telephone memorized before you try it. Once you have gone out the door you are shoplifting and "oops, I did it wrong" is not going to make it all go away unless it was truly unintentional, which obviously this is not.
Michael
Sorry, but you'll have to help me out there - what exactly are you basing that conclusion on?
Source?
Because I don't know of a single supermarket that puts security tags on its items and the only supermarket that I know of that places someone at the door is Whole Foods. But every electronics store I know of has both security tags that must be disabled and someone at the door checking receipts.
Shoplifting is a big problem in the U.S. We should be ashamed that most non-food items that are sold at retail have security tags and/or that retailers have to hire security personnel to stand at the door. You really have to wonder about the ethics of a society when teen-aged girls from well-to-do families feel that it's okay to rip-off stores.
I was walking past the (now defunct) Tower Records store at Lincoln Center one day and a shoplifter was stopped outside the store by the plainclothes security personnel. He was wearing a long coat and had about 20 DVDs underneath, back in the days when DVDs were still relatively expensive. After they took a bunch back, the shoplifter said, "I don't have any more!" but the security people kept looking. Without a shred of irony and sounding greatly offended, the shoplifter said, "What's the matter? Don't you trust me?"
My other shoplifting story is that back in the 1970s, "Yippie" Abbie Hoffman wrote a book called "Steal This Book". I saw a guy walking past Shakespeare & Co. who looked in the window, saw the book on display, opened the door and reached into the window display, took the book and calmly walked away. No security tags in those days.
But I do wonder how Apple is going to handle this. There's been a fair number of reported robberies of Apple stores so they have to be targets for shoplifters as well, although most of the expensive items aren't on the sales floor except for display units.
Really? Uh, ok...
http://www.businessinsurance.org/the-9-most-shoplifted-items-in-america/
I swear if you type "what an awesome day out today" here somebody will want a source. lol
Well then there you have it. I guess I will trust your scientific analysis instead.
Michael
how about the TAX?
Assume my credit card in iTunes has a billing address is in Oregon (no sales tax), if I make a purchase in another state, will they charge me for local sales tax, or no sales tax?
Local, I'm sure...
But if there's a WiFi signal present, wouldn't an iPhone automatically use that for data transfer in preference to GSM/CDMA etc?
My concern would be with Shoplifting, or being falsely accused of doing so. I already feel strange carrying a box to a person, doing a transaction, and having no receipt for my transaction (I have it emailed to myself).
How would the general public, or other Apple employees know I actually paid for the Airport Base Station I am walking out with?
What's why? You provided no reason, just the word no.
I usually avoid those, because 9 times out of 10, it stops me midway through my transaction, because their system doesn't recognize one of the 15 PLU codes on the bag of apples I am buying, or tells me it is an illegal weight, or "unexpected item in bagging area"
I've accidentally gone through the line with something accidentally left in the cart before. By the time I'm out in the parking lot and realize it, I don't want to go back in the store, explain the situation, and wait in line again. I figure it all averages out because they also multi-charge for the same item sometimes, but receipt checking and checkout lines are just scare tactics... they don't really prevent you from walking out with something.
I've never felt comfortable walking out of the Apple store with an item that was not bagged. I usually ask for one because it feels like all eyes are on you, even if you legitimately paid for your item(s).
Hell, I'll be happy if they ever build a calculator and weather app with the iPad.
Hell, I'll be happy if they ever build a calculator and weather app with the iPad.
Um, excuse me did you just make that up? Source please?
On a serious note, it's better for the community that people want sources than not, eh?
It only mentions 'select accessories'
more than likely similar to gift cards you can buy at any UK supermarket, that state "£25 for Topshop" for example, but have no value until they are swiped through/activated at the till. So if it gets nicked, they've lost 1p's worth of plastic.
So it'll probably be gift cards/Apple Care packages that have no value until activated.
more than likely similar to gift cards you can buy at any UK supermarket, that state "£25 for Topshop" for example, but have no value until they are swiped through/activated at the till. So if it gets nicked, they've lost 1p's worth of plastic.
So it'll probably be gift cards/Apple Care packages that have no value until activated.
Um, excuse me did you just make that up? Source please?
97.82% of all Internet stats are made up, on the spot.
Normally yes... if it is something at least reasonably hard to ascertain or a major point in a debate. But when a one-second google seach can verify a simple statement I do not see the point. In this case it was an ancillary comment meant more to show that perhaps food is more important than our cute little gadgets in the grand scheme of things.
Michael
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A334 Safari/7534.48.3)
Just did it now.
It's location aware, so a new on-screen menu pops up when you're near the store. I tapped the EasyPay button and a barcode scanner came up. I scanned a bumper, it prompted for my AppleID password, then my credit card's security code. Then a thank you screen appeared. That's all. It was done over 3G, and it did NOT use my iTunes gift card balance.
In terms of security, there's no difference than walking out with a product bagless and without a paper receipt. I literally walked in, scanned it, then walked out. I did not interact with any of the staff.
I will post screencaps for the skeptics later, provided they ask nicely.
Just did it now.
It's location aware, so a new on-screen menu pops up when you're near the store. I tapped the EasyPay button and a barcode scanner came up. I scanned a bumper, it prompted for my AppleID password, then my credit card's security code. Then a thank you screen appeared. That's all. It was done over 3G, and it did NOT use my iTunes gift card balance.
In terms of security, there's no difference than walking out with a product bagless and without a paper receipt. I literally walked in, scanned it, then walked out. I did not interact with any of the staff.
I will post screencaps for the skeptics later, provided they ask nicely.
I almost choked on my coffee (yes, it's too late to still be drinking coffee...) laughing at this. Consider this this a token +10 since I can only hit you up one time
I believe they will tackle theft however they tackle theft currently. The self-checkout is only for accessories which is already laid out for the public to steal if they wanted to.
I guess its like those self serving machines they have in the Wellington New World Metro
----------
I'm going to test and see if the apple security system actually works. If a alarm goes off I'll just say this is the first time I must have done it wrong. I was always puzzled at the lack of security at apple stores.
I once was at J&R electronics store in downtown manhattan even though they had the security towers and security guards I somehow managed to walk out the store with an item in hand. No alarm went off and no security guard even noticed even though it was with no bag or receipt. (Wasn't my fault though, got into a small argument with my girlfriend and she walked out with me following. I didn't realize it was still in my hand until I was 5 minutes away from the store.) Ended up giving it back though
A lot of those security towers have large gaps in between the tower and the wall, so when no ones looking you can sneak through the gap, bypassing the alarms.
Unless stores that you're in grant tax exempt status for those with a valid statr ID. My work does it.
ITunes Gift Cards are for Software only.
However, Mac Gift Cards are for Hardware.
There should be an option for Mac Gift Cards
No it is clearly not the same, and I am curious as to why you are getting so angry about it?
As far as the stores in MN are concerned, you could never walk up to a shelf, pick up an item, point your phone at it, and then simply walk out with the item without ever talking to someone.
My curiosity lies within how they deal with the potential security risks, and how they will respond when the inevitable attempt to shoplift occurs. You clearly don't have an answer to that question, nor do I expect anyone here to really have one for me either. Still, I remain curious.