Just left Apple store in Soho NYC. No exaggeration, 80% of line was Asian. There was an interior line inside, everyone was Asian, paying cash. It was unreal.
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iPhone 6 Lines and the Chinese Mafia
- Thread starter Samar7
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Why would Apple care who buys their phones? But I have to say the contrast between the cheering apple employees and the comical lack of enthusiasm by the scalpers in front of the line was so funny.
You must be living in the Midwest, insulated from minority populations on the coasts (not really 'minorities' as many outnumber Americans in various counties, and in the case of California the entire state).
Have you ever been to Los Angeles? The video shows some Chinese gathered in lines congregating due to this one event. But in LA, it's like Mexico.
This is reality. We must all learn to live well amongst each other, and face the reality.
Its weird. I think Apple needs to make iPhones instire pick up only for the first weekend in the US. That will cut down on the scalping on launch.
If you think it's wrong to make a profit, then go get your buddies and stand in line before them so you can sell them at face value to all your friends and family. Or petition to Apple to allow only one per customer.
As of now, they aren't really doing anything illegal. They're simply buying and selling at a price the market is willing to pay. It's supply and demand.
As of now, they aren't really doing anything illegal. They're simply buying and selling at a price the market is willing to pay. It's supply and demand.
Showed a friend this video and she was trying to be on her high horse, telling me how people shouldn't judge other people about the struggle they go through. WTF? Apparently these people have more money than us since they're paying cash and walking out with bags of iPhones. People that are really struggling wouldnt have money to buy phone and flip it for profit. And then she goes on and say that the video is only showing one particular areas that has a lot of chibese people. Lol I showed her this post and she just stayed quite. But seriously, these ppl are killing a culture for fans and enthusiast.
Apple could solve this problem by launching in China on launch day each year.
Or Apple could produce terrible products and then no one would line up to buy them.
Economically this is not a problem for Apple. The "cosmetics" are the issue. You've got non-Apple fans buying Apple products who have no intention of using them. The folks in line are also not your typical Apple demographic that they show in their demo ads or pictures.
But a dollar is a dollar, and Apple will gladly sell to anyone outside their targeted demographic as long as they have the money. And these folks have cash, which is even better than credit.
The local hustler who buys < 5 phones to sell to make a quick buck every few years or so is one thing, but I think people are having a problem with the scale of the Chinese buyers. This is an organized operation.
Then again, this is America, and the Chinese in this case are not breaking any rules. They just "want it" more than the others. It feels like cheating, but standing in line, not sleeping, and paying in cash are not against the rules. It's certainly not what Apple had in mind, but until Apple changes the rules, no laws have been broken.
The irony is that the phones are made in China, take a plane to America, get bought by Chinese, and then immediately shipped back to China, maybe even to the same city as the factory. Only now, the product has magically acquired a 50% markup in price! iPhones are much cheaper in US, a rich country, than they are in a poor country. So rich people pay less, and poor people pay more for the same item.
This year the iPhone 6 has a very good supply, so these phones aren't being scalped in the US. You may have to wait a few hours to get one, but almost every store has all the models.
Or Apple could produce terrible products and then no one would line up to buy them.
Economically this is not a problem for Apple. The "cosmetics" are the issue. You've got non-Apple fans buying Apple products who have no intention of using them. The folks in line are also not your typical Apple demographic that they show in their demo ads or pictures.
But a dollar is a dollar, and Apple will gladly sell to anyone outside their targeted demographic as long as they have the money. And these folks have cash, which is even better than credit.
The local hustler who buys < 5 phones to sell to make a quick buck every few years or so is one thing, but I think people are having a problem with the scale of the Chinese buyers. This is an organized operation.
Then again, this is America, and the Chinese in this case are not breaking any rules. They just "want it" more than the others. It feels like cheating, but standing in line, not sleeping, and paying in cash are not against the rules. It's certainly not what Apple had in mind, but until Apple changes the rules, no laws have been broken.
The irony is that the phones are made in China, take a plane to America, get bought by Chinese, and then immediately shipped back to China, maybe even to the same city as the factory. Only now, the product has magically acquired a 50% markup in price! iPhones are much cheaper in US, a rich country, than they are in a poor country. So rich people pay less, and poor people pay more for the same item.
This year the iPhone 6 has a very good supply, so these phones aren't being scalped in the US. You may have to wait a few hours to get one, but almost every store has all the models.
I'm told that the reason many Asian immigrants pay cash is because they don't trust banks to hold their funds. They prefer to keep their savings "stuffed in a mattress" in the literal sense.
Americans and Westerners generally have had the benefit of Deposit Insurance for generations.
I saw the video on Twitter earlier today. The one thing that stuck out was how much cash these people are carrying on them. Quite dangerous. Collectively, there must be thousands of dollars in cash in that line. Good thing the police were there, although I admit there were times when the police were not very respectful.
This is true (first hand experience) but it's clear that the reason why they are paying cash is because these people on the lines are just professional line sitters being paid by big organized Chinese reseller (aka the guy who are collecting the phones towards the end of the video). The people lining up don't actually have money to buy/order the phone either with cash or credit card.
Heh.
No-one should be permitted to buy an iPhone in the USA unless they can provide proof of country club membership.
No they dont actually. If it was average people lining up then yes. Seeing a bunch of scalpers and borderline homeless people in line doesnt help much in terms of advertising because people cant relate.
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I work for a cell store Dealer and yesterday we had a ton of asians coming in trying to sell it, the market price was $100 on top of their purchase price for the 6 and $200 on 6+. Resell value in the US wasn't much, but for the ones who are traveling back to china, they don't check at all in customs since I've been there, so the big bucks are made there.
My boss purchased nearly 50. I still gotta wait for mine to come in next week since I preordered, but apple needs to put a stop to this.
My boss purchased nearly 50. I still gotta wait for mine to come in next week since I preordered, but apple needs to put a stop to this.
I don't know what type of Asians these people were, but Asians in general tend to save a lot of money. As explained in my post above, immigrants tend to distrust banks and many don't keep the bulk of savings on deposit. That's why it looks like the have a ton more $ and are flashing it around.
It is dangerous and indeed looks flashy to the outside observers. It is a cultural thing for them to pay with cash.
I don't think Apple Pay will change this either.
As much as I hate scalpers, it's within their rights to buy things that are in high demand and sell them for profits. It's solely up to Apple to do something to make sure the fans get majority of the supply.
I think what Apple can do is to lock the phone someone brought to that person's Apple ID for 30 days as part of the check-out process during a sale. During that 30 days, no one else's Apple ID will work on that phone, which render the phone useless if resold to someone within the initial 30 days.
I think what Apple can do is to lock the phone someone brought to that person's Apple ID for 30 days as part of the check-out process during a sale. During that 30 days, no one else's Apple ID will work on that phone, which render the phone useless if resold to someone within the initial 30 days.
Of course some of them haven't showered in days. Didn't realize the cops were the cleanliness patrol. They should stick to protecting and serving and keep their crass opinions to themselves. Imagine what that cop would have done if one of those people had said "Hey ***** you" back to the cop? He'd probably have been on the ground in cuffs with a knee in his back.
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Sure they will. It's not like that in most stores in most cities.
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This.
And I agree with much of the rest of this post. This is not a new phenomenon. There was a very good article about this a year or two ago. The thousands of Chinese you see in these lines are not scalpers; they're just line sitters. This is an organized operation -- and not one necessarily run by the "Mafia." These folks are wrangled together; given instructions, cash or a gift card; and told to wait and buy specific iPhone models. They then turn in those iPhones and get paid for it. This is really no different than people with means sending their assistants to pick up an iPhone for them or the line waiting operations like iWait or TaskRabbit -- except, oh yeah, those are companies run by white folks. It's only a difference of scale, and there's a lot of demand among the nouveau riche in China to have the iPhone (as a status symbol) a month or two before everyone else. Apple could kill the resell market in China and the operations here in the U.S. by just including China in the first day release.
I feel like the lines have shifted where people buying for personal use will at least try to preorder whereas resellers go wait in line.
Makes you wonder how many preorders went to Asian scalpels. I got one for my wife (gold 6+) and after seeing how much they go for we were tempted. But in the end she kept it. She loves it so far.
I was going to stand in line but when I got there at 10PM there were already 60 Asians waiting in line. So I knew I wouldn't get 6+ and I left. Apple lost my money. I will wait for next iPhone or maybe even Android if something nice comes along.
I was going to stand in line but when I got there at 10PM there were already 60 Asians waiting in line. So I knew I wouldn't get 6+ and I left. Apple lost my money. I will wait for next iPhone or maybe even Android if something nice comes along.
You seem pretty dense. I doubt that is even their money they are paying with. They are likely given the money to buy certain models and then given a small percentage for the line sitting and the real profit is made by the guys they meet right after buying the phones for them. Those are the guys orchestrating it all and selling them for sometimes more than double back in China.