Wal-Mart Preparing to Offer iPad

[Mp1mancini]

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Why is this exciting? Most wallmart customers would barely know how to spell iPad let alone appreciate what it is.
They'd have to forego 3-5 months of the satelite dish bill just to afford one, or 2 weekends of beer drinking.

 

[silentnite]

OMG walmart selling the ipad.

Let's see, if every walmart in the usa sold them that would increase the locations someone can walk in to buy one by over 5000.
BTW there are less than 250 apple stores.
increasing you supply chain by 5000+ outlets, that is a horrible decision.
So will this move devalue the ipad, like it did to the iphone?

Yep, you bet it will anybody and everybody will have it. most of all it makes it easy to steal. My Wal-Mart in Pa. always has theft problems, mostly from the Employees

 

[KnightWRX]

Why is this exciting? Most wallmart customers would barely know how to spell iPad let alone appreciate what it is.

Ironic that you mispelled Wal-mart there.

Yep, you bet it will anybody and everybody will have it.

I know you're kidding around, but everyone having it actually increases the value. More share = more dev interest = better apps (thousand monkeys on a thousand typewritter for eternity type of deal though...)

Which is why it's surprising about the backlash at this. I bet most people that came in and bashed Wal-mart shop there, with of course a hoodie on and sunglasses so they can hide their shame.

 

[Tyler.Schmaltz]

Ipads in ND

Ipads were on store Shelves at the Walmart in Minot ND. Only saw 3 models available and no display unit. The had stocks of 5 ipads of each model though.

 

[iEvolution]

LOL Some of you have some serious issues. Wal-mart is a world leader in retail for a reason, obviously their "quality" isn't that bad or no one would be shopping there. All classes shop there, from low, mid, to high because their prices are CHEAP. Which in the last few years have actually gone up.

You want to bash Walmart? Bash them on their treatment of employees making them work x amount of hours "overtime" only for the managers to cut you off at the end of the week, force single moms to use government health care because there's is crap, exploitation of China laborers to the extreme.

As far as clothes though, the sad fact is most clothes these days are made in china factories and there is very little difference in quality between brands.

I think its absurd that some of you think it hurts Apple's image by selling it at the #1 retailer in America. Only people that affect apple's image is them themselves.

 

[phillipduran]

Walmart is not exactly the type of retailer Apple would want their products to be associated with.

They already have been for a while. They sell iPods and accessories. They sell stuff to China, what's the diff?

 

[galstaph]

They already have been for a while. They sell iPods and accessories. They sell stuff to China, what's the diff?

Ditto to that I was just going to post that as well.

I can see why people hate walmart, they have been very successful in their business model and as such have driven out other local business; however the world is all about capitalist ideals of money and profit, so walmart was inevitable, get over it or do something constructive to change it, moaning and posting on a forum does nothing to change the world business practices, take action and design a business that will compete with walmart and crush them.

As for Apple having the ipad at Walmat, good for them, they are expanding their market share via large retailer partnerships, just as they have done with the ipod lineup, and just as they will likely eventually do with the mac mini, macbook and imac (which are already available at other large corporations that destroy local retailers, i.e. best buy/future shop)

 

[DrIgg]

Doesn't the Apple store count as 100% accessibility already?

I don't get the "EVERYONE can get one, now that they are sold at Walmart" argument. Doesn't EVERYONE in the USA have access to http://store.apple.com/us already? Even if a person doesn't own a computer, a trip to the local library can get them online to purchase one. And the "devaluing" comment is just absurd.

 

[KnightWRX]

I don't get the "EVERYONE can get one, now that they are sold at Walmart" argument. Doesn't EVERYONE in the USA have access to http://store.apple.com/us already? Even if a person doesn't own a computer, a trip to the local library can get them online to purchase one. And the "devaluing" comment is just absurd.

Because some people like shopping in B&M stores for one thing. It's nice that now you can walk into a store, buy an iPad and play around with it that afternoon instead of waiting for a week for it.

 

[alhedges]

Check out this: http://www.iwim.uni-bremen.de/publikationen/pdf/w024.pdf

It is a study of the blatant and complete failure of Walmart. They had to shut shop in Germany in 2006 and go home like a beaten dog with its tail between the legs. They were just inefficient and ineffective at providing the consumer the best value for goods. They didn't compete with the level of affordability that existing shops provided. And when they tried to treat their workforce in unacceptable ways, German courts soon took care of that.

But most of all, their success in the USA is based solely on their size and their ability to bully suppliers. In Germany, they couldn't do their bullying, and without the bullying the showed up as incompetent failures.

I read the article, and while it's interesting, it doesn't say what it claims to say. The primary reason WM failed in Germany is because it wasn't able to undercut the already extremely efficient existing low-margin retailers. This was not helped by various missteps concerning overpaying for acquisitions.

In the US, WM is much more efficient than most existing retailers, hence the lower prices. It's not really more complicated than that.

 

[aristotle]

Buyer to Wal-mart employee: Is that an iPad?

Wal-mart Employee: Yep?

Buyer: Can you tell me anything about it?

Employee: It sure has a pretty box.

Buyer: Bye!

Is the buyer living under a rock? Does the buyer not have internet access? The buyer can simply go to: http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/

 

[marksman]

I read the article, and while it's interesting, it doesn't say what it claims to say. The primary reason WM failed in Germany is because it wasn't able to undercut the already extremely efficient existing low-margin retailers. This was not helped by various missteps concerning overpaying for acquisitions.

In the US, WM is much more efficient than most existing retailers, hence the lower prices. It's not really more complicated than that.

That is what I got out of it too. Wal-Mart screwed up buying existing retailers and trying to change them to what they wanted instead of starting over. Also Germany is a country that has been around for a very long time and does not provide the same opportunities for Wal-Mart, especially given their business model. Not sure what their performance in Germnay has to do with anything.

I would also note Wal-Mart recently kicked off a promotion that allows you to buy an item on your wal-mart card and not pay interest for 12 months. To me it seemed the perfect fit for selling ipads to existing credit customers of wal-mart.

 

[marksman]

Way to carefully pick one thing to believe, and claim I'm ignorant.

Walmart created the world's best vertically integrated business (supply chain), I'll give them that. But they repeatedly dropped prices well below even their own industry-leading cost in order to kill other businesses. For. No. Other. Reason. Claiming that means the competition was "poorly run" is the epitome of choosing blindness rather than facing facts. Their tactics should have been considered an illegal monopoly, time and time again.

They lowered prices to make things more affordable to customers. This notion that wal-mart lowered prices to run others out of business and then jacked them back up is not true and has never happened. It is nonsense. In the end you are talking rubbish.

Retailers have loss leaders all the time. We used to sell sugar below cost and cheaper than anyone else. It was something we did. We also had canned vegetables cheaper than anyone else, this includes Wal-Mart. Various retailers do various things. These are not uncommon tactics in the retail business. However if you are a poorly run retailer then you are likely to just go away in the face of any actual competition.

The problems I have with Walmart are:

1. Product quality. Walmart coerced Levies into selling a lesser version of their clothing at Walmart. The "Select" branding is trash.

2. My time has value. The time of the people who shop at Walmart does not. I do not need to spend my time or money in a place where everyone walks, talks and thinks slowly. The extra time I spend in line or trying to get around people standing in the isles talking cost far more than the trivial amount saved by their slave labor prices.

That said, if Apple can sell more stuff by selling it at Walmart, they should sell it at Walmart.

This is the kind of stuff that cracks me up. They did not cooerce Levis to do anything. Levis begged and pleaded to be in Wal-Mart, and Wal-Mart said sure, but we need a pair of jeans that we can sell for x and make y margin on it. If you can do that then you are in, if not, well have a good time. That is not coercion, that is the retail business. It was levi's choice to make a less expensive pair of jeans. Wal-Mart did not ask them to necessarily make cheaper clothes, they just told them what Levi's needed to provide them to get into Wal-Mart so they could offer affordable jeans to their customers.

Your second point just makes you look like an ignorant bigoted, *****.

 

[KnightWRX]

This is the kind of stuff that cracks me up. They did not cooerce Levis to do anything. Levis begged and pleaded to be in Wal-Mart, and Wal-Mart said sure, but we need a pair of jeans that we can sell for x and make y margin on it. If you can do that then you are in, if not, well have a good time. That is not coercion, that is the retail business. It was levi's choice to make a less expensive pair of jeans. Wal-Mart did not ask them to necessarily make cheaper clothes, they just told them what Levi's needed to provide them to get into Wal-Mart so they could offer affordable jeans to their customers.

And seriously, I have a pair of "Signature by Levi's" jeans (the ones sold at Wal-mart) here and a pair of original red tag Levi's. Looking at both, I'd be hard pressed to say which had better or worse quality.

Except the Wal-mart jeans cost 25$, and the red tags 70$.

 

[CFreymarc]

People who flock to Walmart are impatient or have never dealt with ordering online.

You'd be surprised how many go shopping to get out of the home and away from family. The biggest problem for a lot of people is that when you order online, you are still at home. If you have rats in your castle you either leave it, live with them or kill them. To many, the former two are the only option.

 

[n8_]

what makes you people think your any better. didn't your parents tell you never judge a book by its cover. it sickens me.


walmart will help move more apple. isn't that what we always wanted? more market share? less PC. you guys must be from new-school apple.. the deuschbag era. what pisses me off the most. IS THE PEOPLE WHO CLAIM THEY ARE HUGE APPLE FANS AND HAVE NO IDEA WHAT MAC "CLASSIC" IS!!!


when apple became trendy fashion for starbucks coffee drinking toolbags.. it died.

sincerly,
performa 6115.

 

[AidenShaw]

when apple became trendy fashion for starbucks coffee drinking toolbags.. it died.

sincerly,
performa 6115.

I'd say "+1" if it wasn't against the forum rules to say that.

 

[eye]

The propaganda machine? Which one would that be? My favorite store is Costco, and I don't recall any anti-Walmart ads from them. Your pizza anecdote means nothing to Walmart or this discussion, btw. At least learn some debate tactics that make sense on the internet.

Let me simplify: their workers don't deserve what they get. Walmart is not the devil. They are nicer than most businesses to their employees. You just made way less sense than me with your inability to follow my statement.

 

[eye]

what makes you people think your any better. didn't your parents tell you never judge a book by its cover. it sickens me.


walmart will help move more apple. isn't that what we always wanted? more market share? less PC. you guys must be from new-school apple.. the deuschbag era. what pisses me off the most. IS THE PEOPLE WHO CLAIM THEY ARE HUGE APPLE FANS AND HAVE NO IDEA WHAT MAC "CLASSIC" IS!!!


when apple became trendy fashion for starbucks coffee drinking toolbags.. it died.

sincerly,
performa 6115.

Sorry, but it's a corporation. You sound like your favorite rock band just sold out. Their entire goal is to sell out, silly.

 

[JeffLebowski41]

Gotta love the Apple snobs. Guess what..apple is not an elite product. It's pretty damn mainstream. You are not special.

 

[marksman]

Gotta love the Apple snobs. Guess what..apple is not an elite product. It's pretty damn mainstream. You are not special.

Yeah Apple is the second largest company in the world based on market cap. They did not get there by having elite products only for the rich.

They got there by selling high grade consumer electronics available to the masses.

People are mistaking Apple of 2010 with the Apple of ~1990.

 

[JAT]

Let me simplify: their workers don't deserve what they get. Walmart is not the devil. They are nicer than most businesses to their employees. You just made way less sense than me with your inability to follow my statement.

Ignoring unrelated commentary does not mean "inability to follow".

Are you familiar with full-time status? Part-time status? And how companies like Walmart define it to block as many as possible from benefit eligibility? Glass ceilings? etc.

This year, not some past they have fixed.

They aren't the only company like this. But they are the one we are discussing.

 

[JAT]

Not sure what their performance in Germnay has to do with anything.

It's funny.

 

[eye]

Ignoring unrelated commentary does not mean "inability to follow".

Are you familiar with full-time status? Part-time status? And how companies like Walmart define it to block as many as possible from benefit eligibility? Glass ceilings? etc.

This year, not some past they have fixed.

They aren't the only company like this. But they are the one we are discussing.

It all sounds fine to me. Again, not following. The whole point was that I see no point in giving those workers benefits unless a company feels they are worth it. Which they aren't. That's life in capitalism.

 

[Zc456]

Gotta love the Apple snobs. Guess what..apple is not an elite product. It's pretty damn mainstream. You are not special.

Not anymore. Maybe when their computers were still using PowerPC and the iPod was only available for the Mac. However, those days are over.