Thursday deliveries?

[greenlogo1976]

I seem to remember from the last two iPad launches that a small number of people who ordered on-line got their iPads the day BEFORE the official launch.

I think that Apple sent out some of the more rural orders early, so that they would arrive on the same day as the urban ones, but the post service was a bit quicker than they expected.

Was anyone here one of those people?

I'm getting mine delivered to Semi-rural Scotland. I got a "your order has shipped" email on the 10th, and told to expect it on the 16th.

This seems like a VERY long shipping time, even if it is coming from China.

I used to work in a major logistics company and you can send a package point-to-point pretty much anywhere in the developed world in 4-5 days max.

 

[bobsentell]

What they'll do is request that the package not be delivered before the 16th. In rare cases, in extremely rural areas, the post won't run on the 16th and so they'll deliver it the 15th.

If you are in the US using FedEx, the only chance of getting it early is if your local FedEx gets overloaded with packages needing delivered. Even with a customer like Apple, package holding is still on a "as space provides" basis.

 

[PhoenixMac]

A lot of people have received "shipped" emails yet when they try to track them, Fed Ex for one says future delivery requested with delivery date the 16th, and overnight shipping, so I am guessing they are waiting until Thursday to ship them and using overnight for it to arrive on Friday.

 

[the_fellowship]

I got my iPad 1 a day before the official release...skipped iPad2...now waiting for the new iPad (expected delivery 16th)...no idea if it will be delivered a day early (don't really care lol)

 

[Lastof]

I seem to remember from the last two iPad launches that a small number of people who ordered on-line got their iPads the day BEFORE the official launch.

I think that Apple sent out some of the more rural orders early, so that they would arrive on the same day as the urban ones, but the post service was a bit quicker than they expected.

Was anyone here one of those people?

I'm getting mine delivered to Semi-rural Scotland. I got a "your order has shipped" email on the 10th, and told to expect it on the 16th.

This seems like a VERY long shipping time, even if it is coming from China.

I used to work in a major logistics company and you can send a package point-to-point pretty much anywhere in the developed world in 4-5 days max.

Is your tracking number actually working yet though? From what we can see most if not all of the UK iPads are still in the Syncreon warehouse in Hinckley, Leicestershire. This one.

They have been assigned to a carrier, but not actually picked up yet. When we get them depends on when they leave that warehouse.

 

[greenlogo1976]

All that "hold until" stuff is great in theory, but having worked in a hub for over 2 years, I can tell you that in practice, the delivery guy just grabs what he is supposed to deliver from a belt and puts it in his van and then delivers it.

The company I worked for sold premium "Pre-10am guaranteed" and "Saturday" services and they just went into exactly the same process as every other package.

Maybe in the bigger CDC (Central Distribution Centres) they will keep them off the conveyor and in a cage at the side, but in the small regional hubs with 5-10 vans, the ipads will just be mixed-in with a few hundred other random sized boxes, and the drivers won't bother even looking for "Hold until" stickers. They all want an empty van at night, so they won't hold them back even if they spot them when they are out delivering.

 

[Lastof]

All that "hold until" stuff is great in theory, but having worked in a hub for over 2 years, I can tell you that in practice, the delivery guy just grabs what he is supposed to deliver from a belt and puts it in his van and then delivers it.

The company I worked for sold premium "Pre-10am guaranteed" and "Saturday" services and they just went into exactly the same process as every other package.

Maybe in the bigger CDC (Central Distribution Centres) they will keep them off the conveyor and in a cage at the side, but in the small regional hubs with 5-10 vans, the ipads will just be mixed-in with a few hundred other random sized boxes, and the drivers won't bother even looking for "Hold until" stickers. They all want an empty van at night, so they won't hold them back even if they spot them when they are out delivering.

Which is why I suspect the UK iPads won't leave that Syncreon warehouse till Wednesday, and late enough that they don't reach the local distribution hubs till after the vans have been packed and sent out on Thursday. Syncreon seem to be handling the UK logistics, and I expect have specific instructions on when they should hand them to the carriers.

 

[bobsentell]

I know the route FedEx takes to get to my house. As long as it is in Memphis by Thursday, then it'll be here Friday. They'll usually be held at the larger disto points rather than the local delivery points. My last couple of "held" packages were held in Memphis, not locally.

 

[Blorzoga]

All that "hold until" stuff is great in theory, but having worked in a hub for over 2 years, I can tell you that in practice, the delivery guy just grabs what he is supposed to deliver from a belt and puts it in his van and then delivers it.

The company I worked for sold premium "Pre-10am guaranteed" and "Saturday" services and they just went into exactly the same process as every other package.

Maybe in the bigger CDC (Central Distribution Centres) they will keep them off the conveyor and in a cage at the side, but in the small regional hubs with 5-10 vans, the ipads will just be mixed-in with a few hundred other random sized boxes, and the drivers won't bother even looking for "Hold until" stickers. They all want an empty van at night, so they won't hold them back even if they spot them when they are out delivering.

I would bet that Apple has enough clout that their product-release dated items will get special treatment and not just be "grabbed" by drivers.

 

[greenlogo1976]

Which is why I suspect the UK iPads won't leave that Syncreon warehouse till Wednesday, and late enough that they don't reach the local distribution hubs till after the vans have been packed and sent out on Thursday. Syncreon seem to be handling the UK logistics, and I expect have specific instructions on when they should hand them to the carriers.

Good point. I think this is the best way to handle it - don't release to local logistics until the last day.

Once they are in the shipping companies' hands, then all bets are off!

 

[phpmaven]

There always a few people who get these things early, but VERY few. From past launches it seems like maybe 2-3 people will get them early. It's pretty rare. I seem to recall as well that these iPads all remained "palletized" and plastic covered in a special area so that they don't go anywhere early. The chances of getting yours early are probably just slightly better than winning the lottery.

 

[bobsentell]

All that being said, I recall that a lot of people got the iPhone 4 a couple days early. Apple could give FedEx last minute permission to start deliveries on Thursday. If you aren't home on Friday, for a lot of areas, you won't get a second delivery attempt until monday. So there is still a chance we could see them early.

 

[Stealthipad]

You people are torturing yourselves!

 

[homeboy]

I will be getting mine delivered to work so it better arrive on time or else my weekend will be long! For that reason I wouldn't be surprised if some got it early because surely, the last thing Apple wants to do is to dissapoint people expecting their device at the latest on Friday. So rather early than late.

 

[greenlogo1976]

I would bet that Apple has enough clout that their product-release dated items will get special treatment and not just be "grabbed" by drivers.

Nyahh... I don't want to ignore what you are saying, but you have to understand what's ACTUALLY going on on the ground.

Put yourself in the mind of a delivery driver:

It's 6am, you are standing at the belt, you are tired and cranky. You have a long day ahead (as usual). Your boss tells you something boring about not delivering the boxes marked "HUX-16-MAR" until the 16th. You are NEVER supposed to deliver anything with HUX until the specified date... but you ALWAYS do. ...and you never get into trouble for it.

He's trying to tell you all over the sound of engines and all the drivers shouting at each other and throwing boxes into their vans. You just want to get out of the hub as soon as possible to get ahead of the traffic.

The boss says that this time, the order has come down from on-high.. it MUST be followed.

You are an alpha male, and nobody tells you what to do. You know that you have two options:

1) Deliver them anyway - Have a standard delivery day today and tomorrow.

2) Hold them back - Have a quieter delivery day today, have a half-full van overnight, and then have a crazy busy day tomorrow - on a Friday as well - where you have loads more parcels to deliver, and they are not even sorted into routes because you have a load of "hold backs" from the day before cluttering up the van, that need resorted into the new routes.

I don't wish to sound cynical, but I KNOW these guys. I KNOW the way they think and work. Yes, Apple might have clout (debatable - there are far bigger fish in logistics terms). Yes, the agreement may be signed by management and handed down to the people on the ground. Yes, there may be warnings that it must be obeyed. But no... the driver isn't going to follow it.

The only way to ensure they get held back, is to hold them back at Apple-depots and only release into the Logistics CDC networks late on Wednesday night.

 

[Blorzoga]

Nyahh... I don't want to ignore what you are saying, but you have to understand what's ACTUALLY going on on the ground.

Put yourself in the mind of a delivery driver:

It's 6am, you are standing at the belt, you are tired and cranky. You have a long day ahead (as usual). Your boss tells you something boring about not delivering the boxes marked "HUX-16-MAR" until the 16th. You are NEVER supposed to deliver anything with HUX until the specified date... but you ALWAYS do. ...and you never get into trouble for it.

He's trying to tell you all over the sound of engines and all the drivers shouting at each other and throwing boxes into their vans. You just want to get out of the hub as soon as possible to get ahead of the traffic.

The boss says that this time, the order has come down from on-high.. it MUST be followed.

You are an alpha male, and nobody tells you what to do. You know that you have two options:

1) Deliver them anyway - Have a standard delivery day today and tomorrow.

2) Hold them back - Have a quieter delivery day today, have a half-full van overnight, and then have a crazy busy day tomorrow - on a Friday as well - where you have loads more parcels to deliver, and they are not even sorted into routes because you have a load of "hold backs" from the day before cluttering up the van, that need resorted into the new routes.

I don't wish to sound cynical, but I KNOW these guys. I KNOW the way they think and work. Yes, Apple might have clout (debatable - there are far bigger fish in logistics terms). Yes, the agreement may be signed by management and handed down to the people on the ground. Yes, there may be warnings that it must be obeyed. But no... the driver isn't going to follow it.

The only way to ensure they get held back, is to hold them back at Apple-depots and only release into the Logistics CDC networks late on Wednesday night.

For my sake, I hope you're right. But I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[Lukeyy19]

Nyahh... I don't want to ignore what you are saying, but you have to understand what's ACTUALLY going on on the ground.

Put yourself in the mind of a delivery driver:

It's 6am, you are standing at the belt, you are tired and cranky. You have a long day ahead (as usual). Your boss tells you something boring about not delivering the boxes marked "HUX-16-MAR" until the 16th. You are NEVER supposed to deliver anything with HUX until the specified date... but you ALWAYS do. ...and you never get into trouble for it.

He's trying to tell you all over the sound of engines and all the drivers shouting at each other and throwing boxes into their vans. You just want to get out of the hub as soon as possible to get ahead of the traffic.

The boss says that this time, the order has come down from on-high.. it MUST be followed.

You are an alpha male, and nobody tells you what to do. You know that you have two options:

1) Deliver them anyway - Have a standard delivery day today and tomorrow.

2) Hold them back - Have a quieter delivery day today, have a half-full van overnight, and then have a crazy busy day tomorrow - on a Friday as well - where you have loads more parcels to deliver, and they are not even sorted into routes because you have a load of "hold backs" from the day before cluttering up the van, that need resorted into the new routes.

I don't wish to sound cynical, but I KNOW these guys. I KNOW the way they think and work. Yes, Apple might have clout (debatable - there are far bigger fish in logistics terms). Yes, the agreement may be signed by management and handed down to the people on the ground. Yes, there may be warnings that it must be obeyed. But no... the driver isn't going to follow it.

The only way to ensure they get held back, is to hold them back at Apple-depots and only release into the Logistics CDC networks late on Wednesday night.

why would the delivery drivers even get the package until friday morning?

 

[dagamer34]

This year, Apple is holding most of the pre-order shipments in the US at the FedEx International hub in Nashville, Tennessee and then doing overnight delivery for Friday, so it's extremely unlikely that your local delivery guy will be able to break the delivery date. They won't get the package until they are supposed to deliver it to you.

Europe on the other hand...

 

[dacreativeguy]

why would the delivery drivers even get the package until friday morning?

That is why they are all still palletized in secure areas at the hubs. Management knows that the drivers don't care, so to keep their client (apple) happy, they don't even release the pallets until it is time.

 

[Lukeyy19]

That is why they are all still palletized in secure areas at the hubs. Management knows that the drivers don't care, so to keep their client (apple) happy, they don't even release the pallets until it is time.

exactly, they're not going to give a delivery driver a bunch of iPads on wednesday, and say here, leave them in your truck and deliver them on friday.

they get given the deliveries for that day on the day.

 

[efyou]

That is why they are all still palletized in secure areas at the hubs. Management knows that the drivers don't care, so to keep their client (apple) happy, they don't even release the pallets until it is time.

Yep, this. Sort of. I'm a FedEx Express Courier. Our managers could prevent us from delivering them though by not putting them on the belt at all. But it would just waste space in the station and the iPads are more secure where they are at currently. Just makes more sense.