Steve Jobs Thought Genius Bar Was 'Idiotic' Idea at First, Said 'It'll Never Work'

[J InTech82]

Prior to these stores, you had to rely on Comp USA in a lot of places. Sure they had a Mac specialist but he wasn't there all the time. There just weren't enough Mac specialists to help you.

Ah CompUSA. I actually worked at one in the mid 90's and I was the dedicated Mac Guy. I never set foot in the PC section. Everyone in the store hated Mac's. When I would go over to the technicians I would express to them that Nvidia is rumored to come out with Mac support, and that they are working on making the Mac OS UNIX based they all laughed at me and said it would never happen and even if it did, it would be a failure.

 

[manhattanboy]

Who edits these articles? Why do they always include a long quote and then several paragraphs that summarize and even quote (again) the full quote that we just read?

That's gotta be a glitch in the Artificial Intelligence algorithm that is writing the article...we may have to get an actual human being involved to fix it sadly.

 

[oneMadRssn]

Once, years ago, I had them install an amp, sub box, and I think head unit as well. First, the tech who was supposed to do it didn't show up on time, then, I sat for 8 hours while they did this...8...hours...for a small Honda Civic Hatch. And to top it off, they actually had the balls to charge me the install charges which was like 250 bucks. I got there at my scheduled time at like 10 in the morning.

Yea, I've pretty much vowed to never have anything automotive done at Best Buy ever again. I'll take advantage of their sales and buy stuff there if the price is good, but never install. There are so many small-business auto shop around, I would feel much better going to almost any of them.

 

[Thunderhawks]

LOL. That's why they have on line appointments. I've done the walk in thing and had to wait a few minutes, but never thought of complaining about it when I took the chance they would be busy and didn't have an appointment.

So, what happens when the store schedule is overloaded and you need your computer and the next appointment is
2 weeks away?

For every good consumer experience with any company there is always a bad one which can be reported. It is the luck of the draw whom you get and how much they know.

The average consumer doesn't read MR or for that matter google even the simplest problems. I am sure that ties up a lot of time in the stores.

If you want to get things done, you have to be persistent, especially when you know what is wrong and you know what you want done.

Example:
Had a broken MBP screen from a drop and went to the store, just to drop it off any have it fixed. The "Genius" kept telling me that I needed an appointment , but the first one was 2 weeks away.
I told him , that I had tested the MBP with an external monitor and it was working fine except for the MBPs own display.
Also told him, I just wanted to leave it there to be repaired and they could call me to let me know when it was done.

He kept telling me that without an appointment NOTHING could be done, i.e. before two weeks. (I have to drive about 45 min each way to that store, so would have been 4 trips, 2 of them wasted) After I told him that it was obvious what needed to be replaced (showed the screen) and that this was very unApplelike, he kept repeating his appointment story.

Step 2: I asked for the supervisor. Mentioned to the supervisor that I just wanted the MBP repaired and that there has to be a way without an appointment when it is obvious what has to be fixed. (Showed MBP screen)
Supervisor arranged a phone call with Apple for 8 a.m. next day = a Saturday.
Apple senior customer rep called around 8, asked me a few questions and issued a repair order. Since it was unclear whether the MBP still had AppleCare (bought on eBay) I gave them my cc for a depot charge of $ 130 apr.
The rep appreciated that I was honest and told him the MBP had been dropped.
On Monday a FEDEX box arrived to pack the MBP into, and after sending it to where they fix things
Monday night it came back on Saturday, again via FEDEX. (At that point I would not even have had an appointment at the store)

Complete new top, everything looked like new.

Best part: Apple never charged for it!

I had other positive customer experiences and a few encounters with unknowledgeable reps.
Again, it all depends on how much a given GENIUS knows and what kind of a person one gets.

 

[kazmac]

Never liked the name, but until last year had stellar service the few times I actually had to use them.

 

[Tinmania]

Ray Kroc of McDonalds..
--scoffed at the idea of medium fries and large fries (any other size then the single one at the time). If consumers wanted more fries, they'll just buy 2 orders of fries
--or the idea of fish sandwiches "stinking up my stores". The person who introduced the filet-o-fish did so out of necessity to cater to the Catholic population that abstained from eating meat on Fridays (that's how the other burger joints stayed in business), but he had to pit his creation against Ray Kroc's Hula Burger. The Filet-O-Fish sold 350 sandwiches. Ray Kroc didn't say how many of his burgers he sold, but it was estimated to be around a dozen, with the most common comment... "I like the pineapple, but where's the meat?"

That is something Jobs would have likely never done. If anything he would have waited six months and then claimed he came up with Filet-O-Fish.


Mike

 

[shaunp]

RIGHT. These trained professionals should totally just take you at your word, and just start replacing everything you say! GREAT IDEA! Maybe next time you should stroll your entitled *** into the Apple Store and tell them in your "expertise" you need a new Mac for free! Based on your terribly uninformed logic, they'll just bend over and give you a new machine!
Go buy a Windows machine. It's what you deserve, homie.

No.. I expected them to test it properly. That's all I asked and they couldn't even do that. I didn't expect them to replace anything without testing. That was my point - they couldn't be bothered to test so therefore they couldn't find the problem I had. All they had to do was plug in a monitor and they would have seen the problem within a couple of minutes. Not exactly an unreasonable request.

That's the difference between real professional (listen to the customer, test and take appropriate action) and an Apple 'Genius' that just belittles the customer and does nothing to investigate the issue. This is basic hardware support.

As for my entitled ***, it's called consumer law. If I buy something I expect it to work and if it does fail it's the responsibility of the seller to resolve this issue, not palm me off with an excuse. But you are right about one thing. I did buy a Windows machine and it's great! xxx

 

[nfl46]

Apple was so far ahead of their time back time. Crazy. Now, its all about $$$.

 

[44267547]

Hate the name but for marketing I could see it's catchy. Was at a store getting a display fixed over the weekend and heard "just a minute and a genius will be right with you." Wanted to give a MEGA eye roll. A genius? Really, I'm going to meet a genius now? Come on.

I completely agree. And to me, sometimes you get these "Geniuses" who are not nearly as knowledgeable as they should be, the term genius seems to to be over-the-top. In a lot of cases, I have had good experiences with the Genius Bar, but there is times where title does not fit the employee.

 

[troublekid]

Once again Steve Jobs was correct. These kids now days may have grown up in the technology age but they have no communication skills; And as for manners, that's another subject!.
The problem is they know enough technology to get them in trouble but they are far, far from Genius in the field of technology.
Apple may have a few techs behind the "Genius Bar" that fit the "Tech" classification but you never get to talk to one of those. LoL!
Steve J, we miss you

 

[Chupa Chupa]

​

Steve's initial reaction to the idea: "That's so idiotic! It'll never work!"Jobs went on to tell Johnson that the Genius Bar may in fact be the "right idea," but he was not convinced at the time that people who knew technology would be able to communicate effectively with customers.

"They're all geeks! You can call it the Geek Bar," he quipped.

But Jobs was 100% correct about this. The people who worked that the Genius Bar, especially at the first stores, were incredibly geeky and arrogant about their tech knowledge. Initially I tried to help them by detailing what troubleshooting steps I took, etc. They always were insulted by this -- as if they didn't know how to test a machine OR they were the "genius" and I the simpleton. Many times this resulted in them telling me my machine "was within spec" or somthing else so they could kick me out of the store with glee. I learned to just play dumb and feed their ego and got much better results.

But let's be clear, the reason the Genius Bar works is because it's the only place to go for free Apple tech support. You can't call up after 90 days unless you have Apple Care. The Genius Bar is a giant PITA now though. It's insane trying to get a decent appointment. Forget about next day or even day after next.

 

[runeapple]

I wish they had real 'geeks' at the Genius Bar, it's frustrating when you know more then the person you're talking too for help (and I'm no genius).

Once I dealt with a truley knowledgeable 'Genius' it was a good day!

In my business I often reject ideas, if someone has good enough arguments I can change my mind, it's a very good way of working. Steve knew what he was doing, he was very particular and had good arguments, but he wasn't closed minded - and that's why he was so successful.

Tim on the other hand seems to approve any thing, I'd love to have been a fly on the wall to see Steve and Tim's working styles.

 

[62tele]

Ah CompUSA. I actually worked at one in the mid 90's and I was the dedicated Mac Guy. I never set foot in the PC section. Everyone in the store hated Mac's. When I would go over to the technicians I would express to them that Nvidia is rumored to come out with Mac support, and that they are working on making the Mac OS UNIX based they all laughed at me and said it would never happen and even if it did, it would be a failure.

The exact reason Apple Stores were needed and a brilliant strategy.

 

[Novus John]

If they're geniuses, I'm the omniscient God that everybody should fear. At best they are posers and arrogant ones as well.

 

[yankinwaoz]

Geniuses... yea. Right.

I always call them "The High Priests of The Apple Chapel".

 

[TMRJIJ]

I actually find them a bunch of condescending ***** that wouldn't survive in a real IT job! Completely failed to recreate an issue with the fans on my 2011 MBP spinning up and being very loud when plugged into an external display. When I asked them if they plugged it into an external display they said 'No', but since their software couldn't find the issue the issue therefore didn't exist. They even went as far to tell me I'd bought the wrong product!! I had to create a video and show it to them, and even then after having the machine a week they didn't do anything. Claimed they replaced the thermal paste on the GPU, but the problem still existed. Had more GPU issues with a rMBP, which they also couldn't find. Took to an independent Apple reseller and they replaced the logic board under Apple Care. Job done. No questions asked.

My Apple Store is much better than yours then.
[doublepost=1488834028][/doublepost]

Once again Steve Jobs was correct. These kids now days may have grown up in the technology age but they have no communication skills; And as for manners, that's another subject!.
The problem is they know enough technology to get them in trouble but they are far, far from Genius in the field of technology.
Apple may have a few techs behind the "Genius Bar" that fit the "Tech" classification but you never get to talk to one of those. LoL!
Steve J, we miss you

You sound old and angry. Take a nap

 

[Evildonkey]

Keep in mind the "Genius Bar" was rolled out in an era pre iPhone/iPad/MBP etc.. At the time, technology wasn't something that a large majority of the population carried around with them. It seems the Geniuses (yes it may have been a poor moniker) at the time were Apple enthusiasts who were more than willing to impart their knowledge on less than tech savvy people/customers.

Through the years, the service, has devolved from a group of knowledge based action to entirely script or checklist based support.

The knowledge base was and is still a far better approach to issues.

At the time, owning or using a Mac or Powerbook etc. was far outside the mainstream and a majority of tech users had become used to the IBM/Windows/PC environment that really did have its challenges and really put a lot of truth into the whole "I'm a Mac..." ads.

Jumping ahead to present day, most people are comfortable with technology and use it on a daily basis (iPhone/iPad/Laptops etc.) and have grown to rely on it, which makes the "Genius Bar/Grove" relevant in the whole ecosystem.

As with any service or product, there will be bad experiences. For the most part, the few times I have needed in store support from a "Genius" (for a lot of technical issues, I use MR and the forums here---thanks people!), I have been more than satisfied with the service and more so for the enthusiasm that was displayed for both the product and the end user experience.

The idea may have not received the full support of SJ in the beginning, but it certainly does have its merit and offered a "human" touch to the products and a genius way of dumbing-down tech support.

--Donkey

 

[George Dawes]

nvm

 

[FactVsOpinion]

Steve was wrong about many things. But he had better vision than anybody at Apple these days.

The fact that he went through with it means that although he may have disliked the idea at some point, he changed his mind. Ultimately, therefore, he was right about it.

 

[9081094]

When seeing the movie it makes me sad. Sad because it is so different today. It was so focused on getting the best experience for all those different target groups: home users, education, Pro. They all had their own eco system with peripherals completing it. It was so focused and you felt proud and connected. Today you'll have to walk along tables with lots of watchbands, almost no software and if you're lucky you'll find a Mac Pro somewhere hidden in the corner. It's like walking into a fashion store with over expensive jewelry, form over function. How times have changed . Maybe I'm getting too old for Apple.

 

[BornAgainMac]

I wish Siri sounded exactly like Steve Jobs.

 

[MacScott]

He was kind of right. Now when we geeks go in, the people working there have a hard time communicating with us.

 

[Defthand]

Sad that a visionary like Steve has been replaced by a bean counting pleb like Cook

Hopefully he'll get the boot soon and Scott can come back and reclaim the promised land !!

Cook was Apple’s supply chain guru, something that he reportedly excelled at. But with big companies, performers are eventually promoted to positions they are ill-suited for. The Peter Principle.

Apple will never have a maverick, non-conforming, all-powerful CEO like Jobs. Large companies prefer predictable, non-confrontational, risk-averse leaders. Only startups—like the young Apple company—tolerate mavericks…until they issue stock. Don’t forget, Jobs was fired from Apple when his methods, opinions and personality clashed with the new, textbook culture. I doubt Apple’s VP’s want another leader like Jobs. They were probably nervous wrecks around him—even envious or skeptical of his reputation. When they saw that Scott was similar, they railroaded him into leaving.

 

[9081094]

Cook was Apple’s supply chain guru, something that he reportedly excelled at. But with big companies, performers are eventually promoted to positions they are ill-suited for. The Peter Principle.

Apple will never have a maverick, non-conforming, all-powerful CEO like Jobs. Large companies prefer predictable, non-confrontational, risk-averse leaders. Only startups—like the young Apple company—tolerate mavericks…until they issue stock. Don’t forget, Jobs was fired from Apple when his methods, opinions and personality clashed with the new, textbook culture. I doubt Apple’s VP’s want another leader like Jobs. They were probably nervous wrecks around him—even envious or skeptical of his reputation. When they saw that Scott was similar, they railroaded him into leaving.

But I really hope they'll get someone back who loves technology and is passionate about it. Tim should be doing what he did under jobs, he is good at bean counting. But we need a passionate tech lover to show us the way to the future.

 

[theheed29]

You don't need to be a genius to read off of a check sheet.

I'm sorry, but if that were the case when it came to a users support needs, why is the Genius Bar so popular? Based on how often the service is used in stores, there is clearly a need for end users who need help. Most of the time, the "check list" you referenced does not solve the problem they are having.