Picked up 3 Gold iPhones on Friday

[jclardy]

I'm pretty sure someone says this every year.

The difference here is that they actually did. Typically at least the first 200-300 people get the exact phone they came to buy after waiting in line for 5 hours. Yesterday you had to be in the first 5.

This is not like some kind of lottery or something where there should only be one winner, it is a consumer product. People should be able to get what they want especially if they spend their time to do so.

And what makes it worse is that Apple knew its gold/silver supplies were constrained, but yet they don't inform people, thereby disappointing their most dedicated fans and making them waste their time (As if standing in line to get a phone the first day is a productive use of time in the first place...)

 

[OneMike]

May your phones live forever OP

 

[CosmoPilot]

Alert the United Nations. After they tackle starvation, war and refugees, they will address your anger at not getting a gold iPhone at 8:00 a.m. Friday morning.

Dude, you're absolutely right. There are many, many more issues more pressing than people getting a launch day iPhone. But you're missing my point. Apple knew without a shadow of a doubt that supplies for certain models (gold, silver) were not anywhere close to what would be sought. However, they chose to not adequately inform their customers...subsequently wasting their time!

Waisting the time of people trying to support your company is a major FAIL.

I got it...the masses would've been extremely pissed (myself included) had Apple said the 5S launch was delayed until October. However, they wouldn't have waisted the time of their customers who took time out of their schedules to participate in the Apple decided launch date!

 

[MJD Dawg]

No dude...when you turn away the 4th and 5th person in line (who has been there since mid-night) due to supply shortages you've dropped the ball!

This has never happened at an Apple store for any iPhone launch, ever, period!

The original iPhone launch was a disaster because the activation servers went down. However, nobody knew how overwhelmingly successful the launch would be. This was nobody's fault, but rather an incovience. Not having more than 5 gold phones when you KNOW hundreds of people will be standing in front of your store without telling them is wrong.

Agreed.

It's what happens when Apple decided it would be a good idea to not allow pre-orders on the 5S just so that news of long lineups at their stores could get on the local news.

And it worked. My local tv station actually had a reporter live at one of the stores yesterday before the doors opened talking to people in line.

It's frustrating for a consumer, but from Apple's standpoint, what's the cost of inconveniencing thousands of loyal Apple fans around the world who were in line early and could still not get a gold phone? Nothing really, as chances are if you're in a lineup to buy a phone, you're a big Apple fan and still going to buy one even if you have to wait a while.

 

[CosmoPilot]

Agreed.

It's what happens when Apple decided it would be a good idea to not allow pre-orders on the 5S just so that news of long lineups at their stores could get on the local news.

And it worked. My local tv station actually had a reporter live at one of the stores yesterday before the doors opened talking to people in line.

It's frustrating for a consumer, but from Apple's standpoint, what's the cost of inconveniencing thousands of loyal Apple fans around the world who were in line early and could still not get a gold phone? Nothing really, as chances are if you're in a lineup to buy a phone, you're a big Apple fan and still going to buy one even if you have to wait a while.

I have to disagree. Apple could've had thousands of each model and the lines would've still been as long as they were. Why, because it's Apple! Did I expect Apple to have thousands of each model...NO, but they should've damn well had more than 5 or 10 at an Apple Store. I can understand AT&T, Verizon, and the others not having huge inventories...but an Apple store??? Wow!!!

Every year, massive lines form up in front of Apple. Like many in here have said...you'd expect the first 200 or so to get what they came for...not just the first 5 or 6 people in line.

I mean, how many Apple stores does the US have anyway?

 

[CooKieMoNs7eR]

Alert the United Nations. After they tackle starvation, war and refugees, they will address your anger at not getting a gold iPhone at 8:00 a.m. Friday morning.

It's not about that, I actually settled for a space grey one, I don't mind that much, but other people do, and they should've alerted everyone that they don't have any gold or silver iPhones before making everyone wait in line for 6 hours expecting to get any color they want.

 

[redshadow]

I think it's true,there is a definite drop in costumer service and quality. No matter how much I love mac.

I'm assuming that you aren't one of the people who paid $600 dollars to get the original iPhone ON CONTRACT, and was basically told "LOL, SORRY!" when they reduced the price month after month.



Please. Tell me more about your opinions on customer service.

 

[Carlanga]

Why shouldn't we (Australia) get the iphone the same time as the US?

Because USA #1 USA #1 USA #1. Lol nah. I feel for you guys.

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TS what state are you in?

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Also, the maybe issue here was prob sending a lot of gold and silver iPhones to Asia w maybe a few grays and here the inverse? I haven't hear of stock quantities in stores for china for example. Would help understand if the color was low universally or it was just miscalculation and bad distribution.

 

[amitdoc2b]

Even if you lowballed it and got $1000 per iPhone, you're still looking at a $2500-2600 profit. Is having the gold iPhone worth throwing that money away?

You answered your own question. People are paying up to $3000 for this phone so it obviously is worth it to several people to have the gold iPhone instead of the money. That being said, I personally feel it would have been immoral to steal phones away from avid Apple fans who slept overnight (including some who were there since 6PM Thurs and didn't get a gold phone) when you don't even want it and want to just scalp it off. I didn't go there to make money, I went there to get a gold iPhone for myself and my family members that wanted one because we love having the newest Apple products.

 

[steve knight]

never before has apple had so many different phones at once. I think there is 108 different phones to stock It may be way more then apple can manage. Where it used to be 18. that's a giant leap on their part. I mean what company can release so many different products all at once and in such high demand?

 

[bushman4]

Seems as though many if not most people on this thread wanted the Gold color. Apparently Apple underestimated the popularity of the Gold color Also it seems many people chose Gold because it was hard to come by. In any case a month from now there will be plenty of gold color phones available so for those who got it because it was a hard to come by that wasn't good reasoning

 

[KentuckyHouse]

You answered your own question. People are paying up to $3000 for this phone so it obviously is worth it to several people to have the gold iPhone instead of the money. That being said, I personally feel it would have been immoral to steal phones away from avid Apple fans who slept overnight (including some who were there since 6PM Thurs and didn't get a gold phone) when you don't even want it and want to just scalp it off. I didn't go there to make money, I went there to get a gold iPhone for myself and my family members that wanted one because we love having the newest Apple products.

I get that, but don't invoke morality and try and take the high ground when you circumvented the "2 devices per person" rule.

And how is it stealing phones from others who wanted it? If they wanted to make sure they had it, they should've been there earlier like you were.

And if you had any patience, you could've waited a month and bought 3 new ones (once inventory catches up to demand). Sell the ones you got yesterday, wait a month, buy off contract. You still come out WAY ahead monetarily AND you get your gold iPhones.

But I guess when people want to make sure others known they've got the newest iPhone, they'll pass up a great opportunity to make a little extra money.

 

[CallOfDuty]

I really think Apple dropped the ball here. I've been through every launch and this is the worst supply/demand I've seen.

Listen, before you start flaming me for my opinion...Apple would've generated the same buzz they always do. This is not an issue of creating the perception of mass histaria for their devices. This is a simple botched release, period!

Durning the keynote last week, Tim Cook almost made it a point of pride to state China would be involved this year for the 5S initial launch. This was a mistake... Perhaps China mobile strong armed Apple into this, but I doubt it.

Apple led consumers to believe that on Sept 20th all models of the 5S would be available. This is especially true sense multiple countries were included for the launch. I mean, how could all these countries be getting the 5S if supply isn't up to par with previous launches? To allow these people to stand in line for hours knowing full well they couldn't accommodate their order is plain wrong!

Apple had 3 choices here:

1. Delay the launch of the 5S for a week to build sufficient inventory for the initial demand for all countries involved. Yes, this would've brought the ire of many (myself included), but it isn't cool to tell the countless over night campers they will not get what they want because they are out of stock to begin with.

2. Limit the initial offering to the least amount of countries to satisfy demand before opening the device up to other countries. This would have upset our international brothers but is a strategy Apple has used in the past with overwhelming success.

3. Durning the keynote be more honest and forthright! Tim Cook should've said, "Assembly has just begun on the 5S, therefore pre-orders will begin on the 20th with a launch date of the 27th.

I ordered the 5S online and was lucky to get into the 1st batch of orders. I will have the 5S next week. I'm very patient, and happy with my situation. However, as a loyal Apple customer I feel bad for the thousands of people let down by this huge debacle!

Again, I get the fact Apple can do what they want and many if you will flame me for my opinion. I just feel Apple had a moral responsibility to ensure its customers were aware of this supply issue. Nobody, and I mean nobody, can tell me inventory was even close to previous iPhone launches!

Agreed. They really should have launched maybe 2-3 weeks later to up the supplies to handle demand. Demand for new iPhones can only go up exponentially every year. Furthermore, there is even an ELUSIVE gold colour this year , so much attention that my twitter account was exploding with friends and people around the world yearning for a gold model. Apple should have seen this coming: The White iPhone 4 did not launch initially with the black one and that was a huge disappointment. When it eventually did came out, there is yet another huge rush just for the white iPhone 4 which launched around the following year. (Black one was launched around june)

Please don't mention China. In china, there is a even bigger demand for iPhone 5Ses there. Do not underestimate the income levels of the Chinese - many of them have actually a very respectable income. And Apple products to them is like a necessary luxury.

 

[amitdoc2b]

I get that, but don't invoke morality and try and take the high ground when you circumvented the "2 devices per person" rule.

And how is it stealing phones from others who wanted it? If they wanted to make sure they had it, they should've been there earlier like you were.

And if you had any patience, you could've waited a month and bought 3 new ones (once inventory catches up to demand). Sell the ones you got yesterday, wait a month, buy off contract. You still come out WAY ahead monetarily AND you get your gold iPhones.

But I guess when people want to make sure others known they've got the newest iPhone, they'll pass up a great opportunity to make a little extra money.

Like I said, I went there to get phones for myself and my family.. if I wanted to, I could have done what you said too. I don't mind if anyone else is doing it, that's not my business.. In fact, I'm sure someone in front of me was doing that too and if what they're doing is legal they have that right whether its immoral or not since they put the effort to come there early. I actually feel bad for this really nice guy two people behind me because he and the person directly behind me came 5 minutes after me in line, although it may be a bit too extreme.. he actually looked distraught with tears in his eyes and was so excited the whole night leading up to the launch...having camped out 18 hours only to be told the last gold phone went to the person in front of him. He wanted one really badly, but I agree that those who came in line earlier deserved their 2 phones per person no matter what they want to do with them. I'm not trying to take any high end of anything, but I do feel for people that were in line with me and refused to take the last gold iPhone when I didn't intend to keep it.. but I'm not saying you or anyone else has to do that, it's my own personal conscience and belief so I didn't do it.

 

[Matt8045]

Mind blown that people care so much about the color of their phone. Even if you don't use cases like myself a light colored phone will get dirty quicker. My white iPhone 5 was a mess after like a month. I'm thankful they only had space grey. Brb phone looking brand new still in 6 months while a white or gold is gonna look brown and yucky no thanks

 

[amitdoc2b]

Mind blown that people care so much about the color of their phone. Even if you don't use cases like myself a light colored phone will get dirty quicker. My white iPhone 5 was a mess after like a month. I'm thankful they only had space grey. Brb phone looking brand new still in 6 months while a white or gold is gonna look brown and yucky no thanks

I had a silver/white iPhone 5 before this gold phone and never kept it in a case.. I never keep any of my phones in a case.. It still looks brand new just like the day I got it with no color changes (maybe very minor light scratching you can't notice unless you stare very hard). I've owned it since last year's launch.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

And how is it stealing phones from others who wanted it? If they wanted to make sure they had it, they should've been there earlier like you were.

And if you had any patience, you could've waited a month and bought 3 new ones (once inventory catches up to demand). Sell the ones you got yesterday, wait a month, buy off contract. You still come out WAY ahead monetarily AND you get your gold iPhones.

But I guess when people want to make sure others known they've got the newest iPhone, they'll pass up a great opportunity to make a little extra money.

Just because you're a greedy opportunist that cares more about money then anything else doesn't mean the OP has to be, so there's no need to try and cram your views down someone's throat. I commend amitdoc2b! He wanted some iPhones for his family, so he went and got some.

Ever hear of karma? Ever hear of class? He's got plenty of it. As for you...

Bryan

 

[KentuckyHouse]

Just because you're a greedy opportunist that cares more about money then anything else doesn't mean the OP has to be, so there's no need to try and cram your views down someone's throat. I commend amitdoc2b! He wanted some iPhones for his family, so he went and got some.

Ever hear of karma? Ever hear of class? He's got plenty of it. As for you...

Bryan

Aww. How sweet. Coming to his defense.

Who asked you?

 

[CosmoPilot]

Ha ha ha ha, you think there were millions of people standing in line for a phone. That's actually hilarious. Almost as funny as your rage about this non-issue.

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I don't know if millions stood in line or not. But considering all the countries involved at launch, it would have to be damn close if not over that amount.

The real question when you boil it all down is:
Should Apple have told its customers that limited supplies of silver & gold would likely not be available at launch?

Reports say Apple stores had anywhere from 0 to 20 Gold phones. Most had only a hand full.

Steve Jobs announced black & white iPhone 4's during its keynote, but he delayed the release of the white phone. When that happened, people could make an informed decision. Wait or go stand in line for the black model. To not say anything and waste people's time is a foul.

And for you guys saying Apple miscalculated...REALLY??? Most stores had 5 or 10 gold models! You honestly think Apple only intended to sell 5 or 10 on launch day? Jeez...

At the end of the day it's just a phone...I just can't figure Apple for this move.

 

[white4s]

ordered mine online in 5 minutes. there's no need to waste your time & money away standing in line for hours and hours

 

[bjb.butler]

That's pretty messed. How apple didn't make it a policy to tell their stores to inform people before midnight boggles my mind. If you have little to no stock, the least you can do is not waste people's time and allow people to go home and order online.

They do this on purpose; if they told people at midnight that they had only 6 gold and a dozen white iPhones, the vast majority of people waiting in line that wanted those colors would go home. If they don't tell them, when the store opens, they'll be disappointed, but many of them will settle and buy the grey, so Apple still gets an immediate sale. If you look at the other thread, there are a lot of people settling for the grey, even though they want white/gold. it's quite sad that apple handled it this way

 

[Col Ronson]

I'm sure you ordered the space grey and could care less...and that's fine. However, I'm sure you'd be pissed if you waited for hours and hours and hours then get to the door and the rep says, "yeah, we only had 5 phones in what you wanted, but if you hurry home and order online, you can get it before November."

I would be pissed too. But most people who would stand in line at 5am for an apple launch probably follows apple news very closely. We all know there would be supply constraints so apple just went with the color they knew most people want.

Not saying it was an ideal launch, but i don't hold it against them. Honestly i wanted the silver, but im content with the space grey. I honestly don't see how delaying the launch would've fared any better. more people would be pissed for having had to wait for a color that would've already been available for you. People who wanted silver/gold would've maybe got their hands on that color yes, but if they delayed the launch to oct, it would've been the same effect as those same people ordering online and getting theirs in a month.

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They do this on purpose; if they told people at midnight that they had only 6 gold and a dozen white iPhones, the vast majority of people waiting in line that wanted those colors would go home. If they don't tell them, when the store opens, they'll be disappointed, but many of them will settle and buy the grey, so Apple still gets an immediate sale. If you look at the other thread, there are a lot of people settling for the grey, even though they want white/gold. it's quite sad that apple handled it this way

there are plenty of reports on the forum of store managers coming out early and telling people who want gold or silver that they'd be SOL.

Besides, only managers would know the precise inventory #. Most of the specialists were in the dark until 1-2 hours before launch.

 

[XboxEvolved]

I remember when the 4 came out and people freaked out over there being no white. Most people in line when I went to AT&T were there for two things: gold and touch ID. One guy that waited for an hour and a half said screw it and left after realizing they had no gold. How much of an ass do you have to be? To me, the gold and white is far to feminine. Now if they had a black and gold on the other hand...

 

[rockyroad55]

I remember when the 4 came out and people freaked out over there being no white. Most people in line when I went to AT&T were there for two things: gold and touch ID. One guy that waited for an hour and a half said screw it and left after realizing they had no gold. How much of an ass do you have to be? To me, the gold and white is far to feminine. Now if they had a black and gold on the other hand...

Or black and red!

 

[sn]

You're right man, I was 5th in line and I was told that they don't have any gold or silver iPhones period, and I'm gonna say it again, I was 5th in line out of over 100 people, I mean at least you should have 5-10 gold iPhones, they had 1, and you expect customers not to get pissed??

yeah, i have to agree, that's an absolute joke. you camp outside the store overnight, one of the very first people through the doors and they're sold out of what you came for - i'd be immensely disappointed.

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I would be pissed too. But most people who would stand in line at 5am for an apple launch probably follows apple news very closely. We all know there would be supply constraints

I don't think any of us knew they'd be that bad really, did we? one unit?! that's insane. I think if people really were aware that that would be the case, we'd have seen much shorter queues.