Is it possible that more than half of Post-Launch iPads are leaving the country?

[KittyKatta]

I wont mention race (even though I share the same latitude as them) because it distracts people from understanding the point, but it seems that iPad hunters in every major city are reporting the same experience in finding a post-launch iPad. "Resellers" are dominating every line to the point where more that 75% of every daily shipment is purchased by people foreign resellers. So is it really possible that more than half of all Post-Launch iPads are being sent OUT the country?

From my 4 day experience of daily Apple Store visits in Vegas then every day I was shut out due to "resellers" and it progressively got worse. And based on what my friend who spoke "reseller" then the story was that its just a few masterminds who would essentially exploit immigrants by paying them $50-100 to buy iPads and flip them in another country for 4x profit.

I know some people defend this action by saying "Apple makes the sale so its not Apple's problem" but battling demand and gray market distribution in other countries should definitely not be a CONSUMER problem. We're perfectly willing to battle against people from neighboring suburbs but for Apple to expect us to battle international distribution channels is a bit much so maybe they should use temporary solutions like "Credit Card only", "One Per Customer" or "Online Pre-Sale".

 

[Rafterman]

I think "half" is a bit much, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was 10-15 percent. Its happening at a higher percentage in big cities (and might be as high as 30 percent in NYC), but I think its almost zero in many smaller sized communities. This is a big country after all.

 

[KittyKatta]

I think "half" is a bit much, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was 10-15 percent. Its happening at a higher percentage in big cities (and might be as high as 30 percent in NYC), but I think its almost zero in many smaller sized communities. This is a big country after all.

In NYC and other big cities then people I know say lines are 70%+

I know 50% is a high number but with major markets receiving a bulk of the daily supply, and most major cities reporting over half of lines being resellers then it doesnt seem impossible that a large percentage of iPads aren't staying in America.

 

[benhollberg]

I would say that 50% are resellers but I don't think that all 50% are going out of the country.

 

[aneftp]

I think "20-30 %" the HSPA ipads are probably leaving the USA (aka the ATT 3G ipads) for various reason.

Obvious reasons: Those 3G bands are used in the majority of the world and they are "cheaper" to buy in the USA than the Apple mark up for other countries.

It's a free market. All about supply and demand. You should have tried to pre order on the first day (yeah I know some who preordered right around 4am eastern time march 11th still haven't received their's yet) but most will get it by the end of the month.

Remember ipads last year were hard to find all the way up until July, a full 3 months after their release date.

I had to wait 4 weeks just to get a ipad camera connection kit back than and you couldn't find the black apple first gen cover anywhere.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Half seems a bit much, but I think it is a significant number.

 

[benhollberg]

Of the 18 iPad 2s I've bought all but four have gone international.

 

[phpmaven]

I wont mention race (even though I share the same latitude as them) because it distracts people from understanding the point, but it seems that iPad hunters in every major city are reporting the same experience in finding a post-launch iPad. "Resellers" are dominating every line to the point where more that 75% of every daily shipment is purchased by people foreign resellers. So is it really possible that more than half of all Post-Launch iPads are being sent OUT the country?

From my 4 day experience of daily Apple Store visits in Vegas then every day I was shut out due to "resellers" and it progressively got worse. And based on what my friend who spoke "reseller" then the story was that its just a few masterminds who would essentially exploit immigrants by paying them $50-100 to buy iPads and flip them in another country for 4x profit.

I know some people defend this action by saying "Apple makes the sale so its not Apple's problem" but battling demand and gray market distribution in other countries should definitely not be a CONSUMER problem. We're perfectly willing to battle against people from neighboring suburbs but for Apple to expect us to battle international distribution channels is a bit much so maybe they should use temporary solutions like "Credit Card only", "One Per Customer" or "Online Pre-Sale".

I don't know what the percentage is, but given the fact that you can't find an AT&T iPad anywhere right now should tell you something.

 

[gigaguy]

I got 'lucky' on Craiglsist, got a black 32gb ATT for $100 over yesterday.
then I sold a sealed 16gb black Wifi on CL for $150 over so it evened out.

Hate to admit it, but unusual sales like B&H's Sunday-after sale (they were closed launch day) and Craigslist grabs are the only way I have been able to possess any ipad2s toward my goal of an ATT one.

I haven't gone to any store or stood in any line.
Unless you have the time! to scour CL or online sites and phone calls, I'd just bite the bullet and order at apple.com.

Any iPad2 seeker (Especially an ATT one) would be pre-ordered at apple.com as a backup.

 

[KittyKatta]

It's a free market. All about supply and demand. You should have tried to pre order on the first day (yeah I know some who preordered right around 4am eastern time march 11th still haven't received their's yet) but most will get it by the end of the month.

I actually waited 4hrs on launch day and got one but my sister-in-law got sent to the Mayo Clinic and missed out so I sent her mine thinking I would buy one the next day or so.

I know Apple defenders tend to be pretty heartless when it comes to Consumer vs Apple issues so I take full responsibility on my actions and don't expect a line pass, but anyone who's stood in a line full of resellers knows the frustration of getting in line 3hrs early only to find 20 resellers being handed envelopes of cash by a kingpin so they could clear out the entire inventory for gray market sales. Apple is aware of the problem and has set forth temporary restrictions to prevent it in the past so I'm just not understanding why their turning their back on the problem (and their most loyal customers) this time.

(BTW. It took 5 days and 10+hrs total and I managed to get mine. But I know many who still are stuck without one and battling lines of resellers every day. This is the new Apple Experience.)

 

[rritterson]

it is apple's problem to the extent it pissed off domestic customers who may then choose not to buy an iPad, then not a Mac, etc.

The best solution I can come up is to require a reservation to buy one tied to a driver's license number. It'll help track how many a person is buying and will make it MUCH harder for the resellers to coordinate the minions. Plus, if they do FIFO and you can reserve a specific model, you don't have to wait in line forever to get the one you want, so it doesn't matter if a reseller buys one.

It's hard to hate on the people who stand in line for $100. If you are willing to stand in line overnight for $100, you probably do not have a day job and need the money.

The ring leaders are a lot more obnoxious, but really aren't doing anything illegal, and, well, if you can't get an ipad, you weren't as committed as the people who wanted the $100.

 

[James_C]

To be fair I don't think even Apple expected the demand that it now seeing for iPad2, however Apple needs to understand that there is no such thing these days as a domestic market place. We are living in a global economy and if people are daft enough to pay up to £1,550 (That's $2500) for an iPad2 on UK eBay then this is going to happen every time Apple try and launch a product in one location.

I hate people profiteering in these circumstances, but hey its a free market economy. In hindsight Apple should have waited two weeks and launched the iPad2 at the same time around the world.

 

[ftaok]

On the bright side (for Apple), they won't have to honor the warranty of these gray market iPads that end up in other countries.

So if half of the iPad 2's end up in other countries, and 100% of all iPad 2's have backlight bleeding, then Apple will only have to replace 50% of all iPad 2's sold thus far.

 

[MarkG21]

To be fair I don't think even Apple expected the demand that it now seeing for iPad2, however Apple needs to understand that there is no such thing these days as a domestic market place. We are leaving in a global economy and if people are daft enough to pay up to £1,550 (That's $2500) for an iPad2 on UK eBay then this is going to happen every time Apple try and launch a product in one location.

I hate people profiteering in these circumstances, but hey its a free market economy. In hindsight Apple should have waited two weeks and launched the iPad2 at the same time around the world.

Wow!! That is crazy. That's as much as the high end 17"MBP!!

 

[joesegh]

Apple cares about the grey market and selling to re-sellers because it ultimately eats into their profit margins when you consider that they will eventually be sold through direct channels in those countries. It's not as simple as "a sale is a sale", because they're eating into future iPad sales in those regions.

That said, I don't think they've found a good way of selling them without coming under scrutiny for discriminatory practices (e.g., not accepting cash). Oh well. By the time the international launch gets underway this should not be as big of an issue. That's when I'll bother to queue at the Apple Store.

 

[James_C]

Wow!! That is crazy. That's as much as the high end 17"MBP!!

Yep people have more money than sense. From UK Completed ebay listings

 

[James_C]

UK Ebay shows a lot of completed iPad2 sales - though not all selling for £1,550. I think that the guy got a premium price as he had it in hand in the UK, most of the listings are selling from the USA.

 

[GadgetAddict]

I don't know what's going on in other states but in NY I have no doubt in my mind that way more that 50% of the iPad 2s are leaving the country.

On the topic of whether this hearts Apple I think it does. It pisses off their customers. If the competition had something worthy out there they would be losing customers left and right. Heck, if this situation goes on till June, I'm buying a TouchPad! Apple has some of the most loyal customers but there's a limit to any customer's patience.

On the argument that big lines is good PR, well it depends. If media tell half the truth, like here on MacRumors unfortunately, where only the size of the line is reported and not the cause of it (scalpers) then sure, this is a good thing for Apple. But if angry customers start ranting on the media and this catches some attention, I don't think it would be that good PR. If your company got head news such as "iPad 2, gray market's most successful electronic product ever" would you go "Awesome, we sold a ton!".

Apple's motto is keep customers happy. Right now a lot of them are not happy and it's due to short supply and scalpers.

 

[Shanpdx]

Apple should launch the new iDevice in HK and China ...

... along with US, Canada, UK, Germany, France

mostly Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan and Canada, UK are the target countries for the gray market iDevices because of the launch sequence and price differences.

 

[toshibauser]

I would say 20 to 30 percent is too conservative, 50 percent is probably very close to the real number. When I was standing in the line on 5th ave in New York on the release date, I could see that there was as much as 50% of the people were Asian, and most of them were resellers. So, 50 percent is a reasonable guess.

 

[biomathdude]

Asia: epicenter of piracy, tyrant leaders, sex trades and of course electronic scalping. Too many people!

 

[KittyKatta]

I don't know what's going on in other states but in NY I have no doubt in my mind that way more that 50% of the iPad 2s are leaving the country.

Think about it. If a store only has 50 iPads per day and each "reseller" buys 2 then it only takes 25 resellers to wipe out the entire morning refresh. I have friends in NY, Chicago, LA and Vegas and all have the same story about "resellers" getting most of the inventory for their gray market "iPad pimps".

On the topic of whether this hearts Apple I think it does. It pisses off their customers. If the competition had something worthy out there they would be losing customers left and right. Heck, if this situation goes on till June, I'm buying a TouchPad! Apple has some of the most loyal customers but there's a limit to any customer's patience.

Well, thats the thing isnt it. Apple has no competition and therefore doesnt need to care who it upsets because a disgruntled iPad customer is going to buy one whether he waits at an Apple Store or gives up and orders online. And in a world where we've got grandparents wanting to buy the latest hot Apple Gadget then the "loyal" customers are more of a nuisance than a benefit anymore.

On the argument that big lines is good PR, well it depends. If media tell half the truth, like here on MacRumors unfortunately, where only the size of the line is reported and not the cause of it (scalpers) then sure, this is a good thing for Apple.

And thats the other thing. The media is far too slanted to investigate the real story here because they prefer the easy "High demand", "Record Sales" and "Lines two blocks long" stories over a piece about resellers that will result in people calling them "Racist".