^^^ Well he was all we had at the moment so some of us decided to believe him. It is better than having no info at all.
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Australian Resellers Receive Mysterious Boxes
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I agree (and stated so) that carenstation87's facts & answers were not earthshaking.
What impressed me was not so much what he said, but how he said it.
Carenstation87's original post (Post #443 below) talked about the box within a box-- that's how Apple handles it. I've not seen that mentioned anywhere else on any rumor site. (I was tempted to post this as a possibility, but was too busy reading this thread)
Then, there's the 3.2 MP camera-- why only 3.2 MP when the iPhone chips support 5 MP (and other phones support up to 7 MP)? If carenstation87 were going to jerk us around, this would be a natural to exaggerate. But, this (3.2MP) has all the earmarks of a SJ decision-- good enough for pics, barcode and image recognition, but in balance with the other iPhone capabilities.
He answered questions (or not) concisely, without embellishment!
Later, when asked ATT-specific questions, carenstation87 demurred, rather than just giving some answer that he really didn't know.
If you review all of carenstation87's posts, you will find they are presented in a no-nonsense way. The style used and the "facts" presented are what I would expect from a Manager of an Apple store. It felt solid and reliable (professional) rather than the imaginings of an amateur* or a geek*.
* I mean amateur (one who does something because he loves to do it) and geek (one who is technologically proficient) in the best sense of the words.
FWIW, you, I, or even Arn could be carenstation87's alter-ego
Below, is carenstation87's first post.:
Alright, i've heard enough of this Hoax business, so here's the deal. I am a sales manager in an Apple store in the United States and i can confirm without a shadow of a doubt that we also received boxes like this and they have been sitting "unopened" in the back of our stores for about 4 days now. The box you are seeing in the photo is enclosed in another box, that box is a plain brown box with only a shipping label. The photos are in fact real. We have had training guides and and documentation on the new iPhone for almost 3 weeks now. An Apple representative came and replaced our hard wired firmware erasers with new bases last week and installed a 3G AT&T base station in our store. The only reason such a tight lid has been kept on this is because Apple sent out a notice that any leaked information would result in instant termination. Let me give you an idea about what this new phone will be like.
Here is what I can without a doubt CONFIRM for you:
3G (Obvious)
Increased space: 16 and 32gb models.
Real GPS
Three colors : White, Black, and Red
Video Conferencing
New Firmware on the device (also obvious)
3.2 MP Camera (Camera APP also received an update with new features such as zoom, brightness control, resolution, etc...)
SMS App update (now includes MMS and Video messaging support)
Price drop: starts at 300
There are a few more cool things i'll let you wait for the keynote to find out about.....there are a few things no one is expecting.....
And oh.......not phone.....but phone's (more than one model)
Good Day
PS.
I am a regular on this site but created a new username and signed up through a proxy just for safety......hope you dont mind the spoilers.
Actually, that is usually the way it works. If you were in an apple store shortly after the iPhone launch, you would have noticed that the employees had just learned and were still learning how to use all of the iPhone's features. The employees I talked to mentioned that the time their store was closed right before the phones were on sale was their only training time on the iPhone.
Most of the Apple Store and ATT employees already know (or can easily pick up) the basics of the current iPhone. What they will need to learn is the expected differences between that and the new iPhone:
--pricing, contracts, activation
--3G vs Edge
--App store
--3rd-party Apps
--new Apple-supplied apps
--other expected new hardware/application features
Additionally managers and select personnel will need to be knowledgeable in:
--Enterprise sales, pricing, contracts, activation
--3rd-party Enterprise apps
--Enterprise app distribution (IT equivalent of App Store)
So, Apple could send the boxes containing the expected stuff (well rumored) and pre-train all of the employees at little risk (who's going to believe any leaks or posts
.What about the (expected) unexpected WOW features that SJ will announce, things like:
----optional stylus input
----handwriting recognition
----voice recognition
----RFID input (for those Japanese metros, etc)
----barcode recognition
----fingerprint/iris scan recognition
----Universal Remote Control interface to everything
----iTunes store & GPS assisted shopping (browsing/comparing/locating/ordering/cashless buying) from 3rd-party vendors
One way to mitigate the initial onslaught of customers seeking answers is to have back-to-back interactive presentations by a few highly-trained employees. The Apple stores are setup for this kind of training-- ATT, not so much. Apple could send these internally-trained specialists from headquarters to each Apple Store (and each major town with ATT or Reseller stores) that will carry the iPhone. They would provide interactive customer sessions as well in-depth staff training for the new WOW features (during the week delay between announce and availability).
That said, I think that Apple will do things differently/better this time. I think the retail stores will sell and book orders day 1, for delivery or pickup when available.
I believe that the iTunes store will let you buy an iPhone as well as an iPod for pickup or delivery!
I believe that Apple Stores and other Resellers will be able to book customer sales (and receive credit) through the iTunes Store and Apple Online Store-- the objective: satisfy (sell) the customer who is ready to buy!
I believe that Apple is betting the Farm on this announcement and will spare no cost to make it succeed!
That's how I'd do it!
Just because a few things are up in the air regarding an upcoming event or adventure doesn't mean that you can't let yourself get all jazzed up about it! Uncertainty is its own kind of excitement, and you should get comfortable with it. Sure, things could fall through and your plans might not come to fruition, but so what? At least you enjoyed that happiness and anticipation. Plus, you will feel more grounded and comfortable about not knowing every little thing in the future.
oh - that's dull - I was hoping for a nice conspiracy theory with Apple lawyers calling up and insisting that user is banned for spilling the beans.
just a couple of days to go, I hope most of this stuff is right because if it is, that's going to be one heck of a device. I also hope that it's just sold unlocked (at an unsubsidised price) so we can all enjoy it. That - however - with Apple's announcements of partners in various countries, seems unlikely.
I thought he was fairly convincing also, but that doesn't mean it isn't also fake.
In fact, this is exactly how a hoax works. How you say it is much more important than what you say. The best hoaxes occur when you have a "believer community" (and guess what we are), that is champing at the bit for secret or unobtainable information. It doesn't matter how ridiculous the thing you say is, it just has to be inline with their expectations in a general sort of way, and you have to deliver it in a very convincing way.
Everyone who's ever been taken in by a con artist say much the same thing:
"I guess on reflection, it does seem kind of crazy that this guy would be selling the brooklyn bridge, but he seemed so convincing at the time."
.
is there any kind of consensus or popular belief as to when I'll actually be able to go to an Apple store and pick up the iPhone? (assuming it's announced monday.. which it will be.)
-mike
-mike
I thought he was fairly convincing also, but that doesn't mean it isn't also fake.
In fact, this is exactly how a hoax works. How you say it is much more important than what you say. The best hoaxes occur when you have a "believer community" (and guess what we are), that is champing at the bit for secret or unobtainable information. It doesn't matter how ridiculous the thing you say is, it just has to be inline with their expectations in a general sort of way, and you have to deliver it in a very convincing way.
Everyone who's ever been taken in by a con artist say much the same thing:
"I guess on reflection, it does seem kind of crazy that this guy would be selling the brooklyn bridge, but he seemed so convincing at the time."
.
But, what he was selling was nothing new-- every feature he put forward has been bandied-about on the various rumor sites.
All he did was confirm some rumors, eliminate others and hint at some more. His biggest claim was that the store had, in fact, received early information, training and display material (under NDA).
That's not "way out there", because that's now it's done! That's how a manufacturer does a major product rollout (multiple resellers and multiple countries).
... Some would call SJ a con-artist, what with the RDF and all!
My best guess would be the 16th for the Wizz-Bang model and 30th for the Entry model.
Most interesting thread.
With the threat of immediate termination, I doubt anyone in a senior/management position would open themselves up as we have seen on this thread. What we are seeing is speculation, most of which does not take a rocket scientist to figure out.
Guess we will know soon enough.
With the threat of immediate termination, I doubt anyone in a senior/management position would open themselves up as we have seen on this thread. What we are seeing is speculation, most of which does not take a rocket scientist to figure out.
Guess we will know soon enough.
probs would be right.
get everyone to buy the expensive iPhone first, then release the basic one.
I think most of the gadget sites agree that it's a Colorware iPhone with a lens badly photoshopped on.
In the US, Apple signed a 5 year exclusive contract with AT&T.
You've got 4 years to wait, or jailbreak it...
I wouldn't call it rude. Entertaining maybe
I do have to question whether "carenstation" is a real person. If they really work for Apple, then why would they leak info (some quite credible)? Their loyalty must surely lie with Apple - since that's where their paycheck comes from. And who's going to jeopardize their paycheck in these uncertain times just to help out a few overanxious geeks (myself included
Something doesn't add up.
A paycheck doesn't always buy an employer loyalty...
And there are daredevils of all different sorts, a bit of a rush perhaps on his (her) part to work the edge of leaking information and not getting caught.
Or... one hell of a story teller having a bit of fun watching everyone piss themselves. Have you read some of the questions and comments? You can almost see the drool coming from their mouths.
It is pretty entertaining! And I think its safe to say, more than one of the features they mentioned are pretty obvious additions to the next gen iPhone. To keep abreast of market trends, a variety of colors and even a second model (smaller perhaps?) seems logical.
If there is to be one with a big increase in features, not everyone will really need them all... add in a lower cost, and you're able to market to another group.
And while the joy of this site is RUMOR, no one here is really going to know anything 100% for sure until Steveo holds it up and our mouth drop open along with our wallets on Monday.
Oh, and someone mentioned some of the very rude replies and flaming... I agree! Come on folks, some basic manners please. why get yourselves so worked up that we have to act like *******s to one another???
Actually do you really think Apple will be sending staff around to check these boxes are intact on a public holiday - tomorrow.
I also think that its something to do with the new store in Sydney since no one is posting boxes from elsewhere...