Funny Story About My iPad 2 Reservation from Best Buy

[TypeMRT]

I finally got the call to get my 32Gb Wi-Fi black iPad 2 today, but with a twist: someone had returned the exact iPad that I reserved and I was offered it with the 10% open box discount. When I got there I asked why someone would return an iPad 2 when they're so hard to find. With a straight face she said "The original owner tried to go to a website with Flash and it didn't work, so she returned it."

I was 22nd in line on launch day and that Best Buy only had 20 iPads. The next day I was 2nd in line for reservations at a different Best Buy. So I'll just call it good luck balancing out bad luck. It feels good to be able to stop worrying about ship dates and just enjoy my "new" iPad.

 

[vi2867]

I finally got the call to get my 32Gb Wi-Fi black iPad 2 today, but with a twist: someone had returned the exact iPad that I reserved and I was offered it with the 10% open box discount. When I got there I asked why someone would return an iPad 2 when they're so hard to find. With a straight face she said "The original owner tried to go to a website with Flash and it didn't work, so she returned it."

I was 22nd in line on launch day and that Best Buy only had 20 iPads. The next day I was 2nd in line for reservations at a different Best Buy. So I'll just call it good luck balancing out bad luck. It feels good to be able to stop worrying about ship dates and just enjoy my "new" iPad.

I wish I had your luck!

 

[ravenas]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

 

[iRabbit]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

lots of web designers are moving away from flash anyway... I think in the year me and my husband have been using iPads lack of flash support has been an issue maybe 3 times. Most of what we don't see is stupid ads. Good riddance.

 

[MotherFinMike]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

Iswifter Renders flash sites on the iPad I've used it once

 

[btbrossard]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I'm pretty sure the lack of Flash isn't going to doom the iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch.

 

[ravenas]

lots of web designers are moving away from flash anyway... I think in the year me and my husband have been using iPads lack of flash support has been an issue maybe 3 times. Most of what we don't see is stupid ads. Good riddance.

Oh I know. I despise Flash myself. (I'm a designer too and refuse to use it unless absolutely necessary.) But it'll be interesting to see how many neophyte buyers (i.e. those who have never bought/owned an Apple product) will react to the inherent and well-known shortfalls of their "gotta-have" devices.

Just the first time you load iTunes on a PC is enough of a daunting experience to make many a Windows user run screaming for the return counter. We are so trained to have our content in Windows Media Player and by default iTunes wants everything in AAC. Then there is the long load times and inexplicable crashes when its trying to backup the device, download content or sync. If I had a nickel for every time I had to kill iTunes and restart it...

 

[epi117]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

Im sure thats why they hardly sold any ipad 1.

 

[PittsDriver]

Flash is garbage anyway...

 

[DougFNJ]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

Well researched, well thought out, very well written post. The toughest thing about waiting on line for the iPad, was beating through all those people waiting in line for the Xoom. And those poor people that have been waiting in line since Christmas for the Galaxy Tab.

Sigh

 

[Jcoz]

Oh I know. I despise Flash myself. (I'm a designer too and refuse to use it unless absolutely necessary.) But it'll be interesting to see how many neophyte buyers (i.e. those who have never bought/owned an Apple product) will react to the inherent and well-known shortfalls of their "gotta-have" devices.

Just the first time you load iTunes on a PC is enough of a daunting experience to make many a Windows user run screaming for the return counter. We are so trained to have our content in Windows Media Player and by default iTunes wants everything in AAC. Then there is the long load times and inexplicable crashes when its trying to backup the device, download content or sync. If I had a nickel for every time I had to kill iTunes and restart it...

Well your first and second post dont seem to add up to a single coherent thought in the slightest, however I have to agree with your second point here....this is one thing I think apple has really dropped the ball on.....iTunes for windows is an absolutely horrible experience and given the wide range of users owning ipods, you would think that the hub of all apple idevices would be an impressive piece of software on all platforms.

Instead, it one of the absolute worst programs I am forced to run on my work computer. I literally cannot think of a worse application I've used on that computer.

On the mac its much better, but you would think they could have really dialed in a piece of software as important and integral as iTunes.

 

[dmunz]

I finally got the call to get my 32Gb Wi-Fi black iPad 2 today, but with a twist: someone had returned the exact iPad that I reserved and I was offered it with the 10% open box discount. When I got there I asked why someone would return an iPad 2 when they're so hard to find. With a straight face she said "The original owner tried to go to a website with Flash and it didn't work, so she returned it."

I was 22nd in line on launch day and that Best Buy only had 20 iPads. The next day I was 2nd in line for reservations at a different Best Buy. So I'll just call it good luck balancing out bad luck. It feels good to be able to stop worrying about ship dates and just enjoy my "new" iPad.

Wow, I was offered a returned 16GB black WiFi and told they did not do the 10% discount on iPad 2s. (I passed.)

Lucky You.

FWIW
DLM

 

[TypeMRT]

Wow, I was offered a returned 16GB black WiFi and told they did not do the 10% discount on iPad 2s. (I passed.)

Lucky You.

FWIW
DLM

I didn't even ask for the 10% discount (I was planning on using the 10% Post Office moving coupon). I did take the opportunity to buy the AV adapter cable.
I figured that if something was wrong with it I could just go to the Apple Store for a replacement. So far it's acted like it's brand new so I have ZERO complaints.

 

[robertk328]

I returned my 32gb wifi today when my 32gb ATT came in I'm wondering if it will go into open box or be offered to someone in queue.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[reputationZed]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8F190 Safari/6533.18.5)

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

Probably not as many as the number of Xoom and Galaxy owners that will be returning their Honeycomb tablets because the Flash performance is pathetic and battery life goes to crap.

I don't see Apple relenting because a very small minority of people return their iPads.

 

[racer1441]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

What have you been drinking and can I get some?

 

[ravenas]

Well your first and second post dont seem to add up to a single coherent thought in the slightest, however I have to agree with your second point here....this is one thing I think apple has really dropped the ball on.....iTunes for windows is an absolutely horrible experience and given the wide range of users owning ipods, you would think that the hub of all apple idevices would be an impressive piece of software on all platforms.

Instead, it one of the absolute worst programs I am forced to run on my work computer. I literally cannot think of a worse application I've used on that computer.

On the mac its much better, but you would think they could have really dialed in a piece of software as important and integral as iTunes.

I may hate Flash personally and not miss it so much on my iPad1, but I'm speaking of the other consumers out there who aren't even aware what Flash is. All they know is that they try to visit their favorite web haunts and get big empty spaces or non-functional sites.

In 2010 the best tablet device on the market was the iPad. But this is 2011. Time to be more realistic about things.

Sure Apple enjoys a good opening volley. They are riding high off the iPad1 hype and rushing to market a month ahead of schedule (and ahead of their nearest WiFi competitors).

Android didn't sell tablets well last year for one simple reason. The enforced carrier contract lock with 3G only models. But this summer will see the launch of the WiFi competition. There will be tablets of every make and model on the floors of Best Buy. All priced the same. Consumers will have more choice.

Don't forget that although iPads outsold other tablets last year, the equally priced but more functional netbooks outsold iPads.

Flash is only one reason for a casual user to return their iPad. There's the crappy cameras, lacking file system, poor import options and lack of content creation functionality to bog you down. How the heck do you e-mail your photos off your digicam via your iPad (without another $40 dongle attachment). What if all you have is your tablet and you want to snap a quick photo of the family out and about? Isn't it better to have a camera better than a toddler's toy for later printing? And if you have a job that requires you to routinely edit documents?

Don't get me wrong. I've enjoyed my iPad1 so much I lined up for the iPad2. But there's no doubt the device has shortfalls that will be challenged by the competitors this summer. This contest is far from over.

For the consumer, such as the one who returned this iPad, I'm betting it'll come down to the same netbook vs. iPad debate that characterized last year.

 

[Faux Carnival]

I'm not a Flash fan but what kills me is Steve Jobs' stubbornness. So much power inside and even no option to turn it on/off. That is just unacceptable.

Just don't use it if you don't want to. It won't slow down the device. Cnet's Xoom review showed that it opened a non-Flash website in exactly same time when it had Flash installed and when it didn't. So that's no longer a valid argument iFanboys. Get out of Steve Jobs' distortion field.

 

[reputationZed]

I'm not a Flash fan but what kills me is Steve Jobs' stubbornness. So much power inside and even no option to turn it on/off. That is just unacceptable.

Just don't use it if you don't want to. It won't slow down the device. Cnet's Xoom review showed that it opened a non-Flash website in exactly same time when it had Flash installed and when it didn't. So that's no longer a valid argument iFanboys. Get out of Steve Jobs' distortion field.

Implementing Flash, even in the form of an on off switch, would require Apple to comit devopment resources to something they obviously feel is a dead technology. Its not the first time that Apple has dumped a technology that they felt had outlived their usefulness (remember the floppy drive?).

Your argument that "It won't slow down the device" sounds like its based on a single usecase were the technology in question was tested by visiting a site that didn't implement the technology to begin with.

 

[bri1212]

I'm not a Flash fan but what kills me is Steve Jobs' stubbornness. So much power inside and even no option to turn it on/off. That is just unacceptable.

Just don't use it if you don't want to. It won't slow down the device. Cnet's Xoom review showed that it opened a non-Flash website in exactly same time when it had Flash installed and when it didn't. So that's no longer a valid argument iFanboys. Get out of Steve Jobs' distortion field.

When are you Flashbois going to get it through your head, you need to be talking to Adobe. This is not about Apple, not allowing Flash, this is about Adobe not producing flash to run on any platform well, but especially not OSX, and especially not OSI. And before you tell me that it works fine on windows, I have two Vista machines and one XP machine which will contradict you.
In my year of using the ipad1, and my four years of using the iphone, I can only name a handful of times where I have gone to a site with flash where I was unable to get to the information I needed. Mostly I just don't have to see the stupid adds anymore.

 

[miamialley]

Hee hee. And this is why Android will eventually kill iPad. Unless Apple relents on Flash or the internet magically evolves to HTML5 wide adoption making Flash irrelevant.

I wonder how many first timers will be returning their iPads because they fell for the hip commercials and didn't know what they were buying?

Yeah, the lack of Flash has killed off the iPhone. Oh wait...

 

[Faux Carnival]

When are you Flashbois going to get it through your head, you need to be talking to Adobe. This is not about Apple, not allowing Flash, this is about Adobe not producing flash to run on any platform well, but especially not OSX, and especially not OSI. And before you tell me that it works fine on windows, I have two Vista machines and one XP machine which will contradict you.
In my year of using the ipad1, and my four years of using the iphone, I can only name a handful of times where I have gone to a site with flash where I was unable to get to the information I needed. Mostly I just don't have to see the stupid adds anymore.

You don't need Flash because you are brainwashed to not need it. By Steve Jobs. One day he'll come and say USB isn't necessary anymore. And you'll follow along. Oh wait... I think he already did. What is the only laptop in the world which doesn't ship with USB 3.0?

It's really "magical" how you iSheep settle for so little?

 

[milani]

^ Actually Apple just follows the recommendations of the W3C.

I finally got the call to get my 32Gb Wi-Fi black iPad 2 today, but with a twist: someone had returned the exact iPad that I reserved and I was offered it with the 10% open box discount. When I got there I asked why someone would return an iPad 2 when they're so hard to find. With a straight face she said "The original owner tried to go to a website with Flash and it didn't work, so she returned it."

Unbelievable. And possible the best thing that Adobe has every done for an Apple product owner.

 

[btbrossard]

What is the only laptop in the world which doesn't ship with USB 3.0?

The ONLY laptop in the ENTIRE world? Come on.

I really, really miss all those crappy flash ads when browsing the web on my iPad.


As much as you complain about people being in Steve Job's reality distortion field, you are just as much in Adobe's reality distortion field.


If you need flash, buy a different tablet.

 

[Faux Carnival]

The ONLY laptop in the ENTIRE world? Come on.

I really, really miss all those crappy flash ads when browsing the web on my iPad.


As much as you complain about people being in Steve Job's reality distortion field, you are just as much in Adobe's reality distortion field.


If you need flash, buy a different tablet.

There is something you guys need to understand. There is no perfect product. You weigh pros and cons and you buy the best. The best overall is iPad for now. We are just discussing. You guys support the lack of Flash like crazy, that's just sad. "Then don't buy is" just a lame argument. You guys think you are the best just because you own a product with a bitten apple on the back of it. I HAZ APPLE, BAAW!