andgoes after the business sector officially. hah
This is going to help Apple a lot. Lack of Business-class support was a deal-breaker in most cases.
I would be nice if I could resell those services and make some money at the same time...
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Apple Preps Retail Employees for Rollout of 'Joint Venture' Services
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This is going to help Apple a lot. Lack of Business-class support was a deal-breaker in most cases.
I would be nice if I could resell those services and make some money at the same time...
WTF? What a pile of horse ****!
"priority access" over us lonely peons, eh? It's not like were spending thousands of dollars on your products, we understand that you need to charge even more to screw those who don't go with the service!!!
You REALLY don't know how business works huh?
What would happen if everyone has "priority" access? NO ONE WOULD.
Come one man, get real.
I would pay for this.
Yeah this is not really enterprise support. Seems more targeted at small businesses, something IBM, HP, and Microsoft never did a good job of supporting.
WTF? What a pile of horse ****!
"priority access" over us lonely peons, eh? It's not like were spending thousands of dollars on your products, we understand that you need to charge even more to screw those who don't go with the service!!!
Dont be a tool mate. This wont affect in-store or AppleCare service....its a niche addition which will boost sales if anything. If your local <enter store type> has a mac sitting on the counter, its being shown off to customers. Free advertising. On top of that, its showing loyalty to small business owners. They dont HAVE to do this, and they certainly wont make a groundbreaking profit, but its more of an insurance policy. Think of it as AppleCare SB Edition.
Just dont bitch for the sake of bitching...they are hardly going to provide it for free, and its a pretty damn reasonable price for a small business.
I just had my logic board replaced on my MBP. I didn't even realize I was still under Applecare. I thought it might be part of the Nivida problem, and so I took it in but they could not verify it was part of that problem, but they looked it up and saw I still had 87 days left on Applecare. They said no problem, it would cost $537.00 but it will be no charge. May take 5 days to get it fixed. Next morning I get a call to come pick it up. No fuss no muss.
Apple care is one of the best warranties out there... The price per benefit makes it too good to pass up. I have seen people say the rates are going up, but I don't know about that. I know I am very glad I got it on my devices.
The real benefit is how easy apple makes it to use it and they don't normally hassle you or run you in circles. If you have a problem you know Apple will take care of it and take care of it quickly.
When I brought in my iMac to replace the SuperDrive under warranty I created an encrypted disk image before hand called "Sensitive Files" and configured it to mount whenever I login (prompting for a password that DIFFERED from the login password). I then shoved all my sensitive files in that disk image and then did the "Securely Empty Trash" on the originals.
I had to give the Apple Genius my login password so they could get into the machine, and while I received assurances that they monitor those who access machines because of the potential damage it could do to Apple to have somebody stealing personal data, I still wanted my own assurances that my sensitive files were fully encrypted and unreachable. To me the encrypted disk image was a far better option than using FireVault because the password for it could differ from the login password which I had to give to the tech.
In the future though, I may consider an external NAS for sensitive files or getting a Mac Pro so I can service things like busted optical drives myself. I really did not want to risk getting dust under the glass of the iMac by opening it myself.
Anybody using a Mac for small business purposes should consider using external drives for sensitive data or using an encrypted disk image on the machine itself. For laptops the encrypted disk image works best so long as you back it up before you bring the machine in for service. For desktop machines, it is best to have a file server externally or a NAS.
Very true. The best Genius at our store is now the store manager at the Starbucks down the street. makes it easier to get help though
I agree. I had a lot of problems with my White 07 iMac. It was one of the early intels so I guess it was expected. In my 3 years of AppleCare I had the following done:
- New SuperDrive
- New Hard Drive (2008)
- New Logic Board (2008)
- New Hard Drive again (2010) w/free upgrade to 320GB as they didnt have the 250s in stock!
- New Logic Board (2010) - caused by blown USB bus, they guy said they replaced all internal boards to be on the safe side since it was almost out of warranty! (Had 16 days left when I took it in!).
Most times its been overnight. The Superdrive was done on the spot. The last logic board replacement took 4 days.
I also had AppleCare on one of the 06 white 13" MacBooks. Had that taken in for the well known plastic chipping edges. They replaced the whole internal plastic (keyboard, trackpad and screen surround). Did that one on the spot!
I cant fault AppleCare. They always get it sorted as quick as possible. Multiple times I've just turned up and they fix stuff. My two nearest Apple Stores are usually very good.
I've gotta get it for my new MacPro now but am holding off till closer to its year end warranty...its pretty expensive for the Pro models, but still very worth it (IMO)!
Edit: Oh, and the 24" White iMac still works perfectly fine. Its up for sale if anyone in the UK wants it
Too bad nobody in small business uses Macs.
90%+ Macs at my company. A few thousand employees.
Hummm... seems like a good deal for a small business. $500 may seem like a lot, but if you rely on your computers and don't have your own IT department to take care of the little things that crop up, this could be an awesome value added service.
It will be interesting to see how well this works for Apple.
It will be interesting to see how well this works for Apple.
Nowhere in the story did they say or infer that this is all about Macs or OSX. Apple is heavy in small businesses with iPads and iPhones, and doing better by the quarter with iMacs in small business sector.
Furthermore, developers are falling over themselves writing vertical market software for iDevices. Just recently we heard Tim Cook predicting that the iPad will be a bigger market than PCs.
The future is not about Microsoft or PCs, it's about iDevices and that's where Apple owns the landscape. This JointVenture will help Apple solidify their hold because it extends the Apple ecosystem into an area where HP and BB have been strong. I think it's telling that Apple is making this move before the HP or BB tablets hit the market.
Think ecosystem and you can see what Apple is doing...it's the 900 pound ape that comes with each product.
expensive, have to think about this
Not really. What you are effectively doing is hiring your IT support for approximately $50 a month. That is cheap compared to some IT service companies that charge several hundred a month. One or two support calls, considering how mission critical your Mac is, will have the service pay for itself. However, this is the first time I have seen a plan like this come out of a public retail store with a good advertising budget.
While I don't want to see this, I think it is just a matter of time before some "tie-dyed and Birkenstock type" see themselves bypassed in the Genius Bar line by someone with a Joint Venture account. Then this guy goes into a rage and starts the Angry Proletariat Shuffle to dramatize they are a victim of capitalism. My bet it will be either in the San Francisco or Harvard Square store first.
its not so much a windows world anymore....think about the businesses that now use iPhones and iPads....i worked for Wells Fargo Finance last year, and we all had iPhones and there was a business prop. to get iPads as well...i know schools are not a small business...but more and more schools are joining the mac world every day and with iPod touch/iPad they are jumping into it faster then ever. There are tons of apps out there for educational use. Businesses are turning over, they now have choice, and with iOS and Mac OS X its going to get a lot more business, no longer a windows world and a PC universe. Times are changing and its for the better. The windows machines that businesses use are HORRIBLE and old. This is the first step towards a much better way.
This is a smart move. So goes business, so goes the public (to some degree). How many people do you know that own a PC versus a Mac, simply because its "what I use at work". Catering to business is a very wise move.
If you go on the 9to5mac site, from what I understand this Joint Venture solution is primarily aimed at organizations of 10 employees or less which is fairly small. So for organizations of this size, this service may appeal to them.
Sounds the organizations you serve are larger and / or have more extensive needs which probably won't be served well by Joint Venture but by contractors such as yourself.
I agree. I had a lot of problems with my White 07 iMac. It was one of the early intels so I guess it was expected. In my 3 years of AppleCare I had the following done:
- New SuperDrive
- New Hard Drive (2008)
- New Logic Board (2008)
- New Hard Drive again (2010) w/free upgrade to 320GB as they didnt have the 250s in stock!
- New Logic Board (2010) - caused by blown USB bus, they guy said they replaced all internal boards to be on the safe side since it was almost out of warranty! (Had 16 days left when I took it in!).
Most times its been overnight. The Superdrive was done on the spot. The last logic board replacement took 4 days.
I also had AppleCare on one of the 06 white 13" MacBooks. Had that taken in for the well known plastic chipping edges. They replaced the whole internal plastic (keyboard, trackpad and screen surround). Did that one on the spot!
I cant fault AppleCare. They always get it sorted as quick as possible. Multiple times I've just turned up and they fix stuff. My two nearest Apple Stores are usually very good.
I've gotta get it for my new MacPro now but am holding off till closer to its year end warranty...its pretty expensive for the Pro models, but still very worth it (IMO)!
Edit: Oh, and the 24" White iMac still works perfectly fine. Its up for sale if anyone in the UK wants it
wait did apple care actually come to your house?
Nice to see Apple taking business customers more seriously. Business-class support services (or rather a lack thereof) is one of the big reasons macs haven't made more inroads with commercial customers. After all, Microsoft Office, the one universal business "killer app" has been available for OSX for many years. It's just business level support services for these machines has always been lacking.
This vendor level support is a nice addition, although this kind of support including loaner machines etc. should really be at the VAR level. I guess there aren't too many Apple VAR's that cater to businesses?
This vendor level support is a nice addition, although this kind of support including loaner machines etc. should really be at the VAR level. I guess there aren't too many Apple VAR's that cater to businesses?
WTF? What a pile of horse ****!
"priority access" over us lonely peons, eh? It's not like were spending thousands of dollars on your products, we understand that you need to charge even more to screw those who don't go with the service!!!
How is the 'priority access' any different to other companies who offer more comprehensive support policy - such as Sun/Oracle who offer 'gold' level support or Microsoft who have special enterprise contracts which provide services you or I would never hope to access?
I think he moreso meant like is there a no pron rule
then if so, how do they really know? It could open a whole array of question
Not even with pron, this could include illegal software, torrents, all kinds of iffy things out there on the internet.
This really is an interesting concept on how apple will handle it. Microsoft would play the "we wont look, and you wont tell" rule im sure... will apple too?
WTF? What a pile of horse ****!
"priority access" over us lonely peons, eh? It's not like were spending thousands of dollars on your products, we understand that you need to charge even more to screw those who don't go with the service!!!
Everything has to be freeeeeee for meeeeeeeeee!!!!