Apple : won’t you look at us?
I have been saving up money to buy myself a MacBook, slowly but surely. I can safely say that I now have a $1000 in my PayPal just for the MacBook.
Apple prides itself on its stores, both on and offline. I have heard lots of good things about them, and I wish I could visit one of them. But here, in India, I don’t feel that Apple love. Of the handful of countries that have Apple stores, India is not one. Here, we have to rely on authorised resellers. Joy! Apart from that, ordering from these guys means a waiting time of God knows how long. You phone these guys and say that you’d like a MacBook. They take your number and hang up. Weeks, maybe months later, they call to say that the machine is in stock. Wee.
That’s only half the trouble. As I told you, I’ve saved $1000. That’s about a MacBook 1.66 Core Duo, right? Wrong. In India, it costs $1600. What the F? Not only do I not get it when I want it, I don’t get it at the price it’s shown!
So, as a last resort, I decided to ask Apple.com, via email why this was so. Maybe it’s me. Maybe I can’t write an email. Anyway, I distinctly remember asking them 3 questions. Why I can’t order online? Why do I have to pay so much? and Why won’t I get an iPod for free as advertised on your site? Their reply?
We apologize but the Apple Store that serves the United States does not sell to customers whose billing or shipping addresses are outside the continental United States, Alaska, and Hawaii.
Um.. that *so* covers the 3 questions! To be utterly frank, I’m pissed off at Apple.
August 9th, 2006 at 6:24 pm
Hot damn, sounds like Apple is giving you the cold shoulder. Maybe you should form a commando team and raid the factory in China where the Macbook is made.
August 9th, 2006 at 8:42 pm
1) They would never profit if they had a store in India.
2) Shipping computer equipment overseas is a pain in the ass due to customs, insurance, etc etc.
3) Even if they had a store in India, or shipped computers there, the prices could never be the same as they are in the US. Why? They would have to cover all the extra expenses, shipping, insurance, all the regulations the country requires to legally sell computer equipment.
4) You emailed the US Apple Store, it’s pretty clear they don’t sell to other countries, asking them to do that is just plain stupid on your part.
Deal with your resellers, they are not making $600 profit on the MacBook, I bet they are making 100-200 tops. Do you know Apple Stores in the UK sell everything at a much higher price than in the US?.
August 9th, 2006 at 8:57 pm
*Chris* : They’re on their way!
*Josue* : 1)Well, there are plenty of Apple users in India, and anywhere Apple opens a store will be a hit.
2) I’m not talking about them shipping it all the way from US. They assemble everything in China, and if they had a store, they could just send it over from China, which would, I think, be a fraction of the costs of shipping from the US.
3) Again, this is covered in #2.
4) Well, that was the only email addy I had in hand.
August 10th, 2006 at 2:58 am
Ahh…seems like there’s a big worm in Apple.
By the way, is this perhaps better: http://www.asia.apple.com/store/india/
I have no idea since I don’t live in India, I just Googled it.
August 10th, 2006 at 7:48 pm
*Yian* : That page really serves no purpose. It’s not really a Store, just a bunch of html pages.
August 12th, 2006 at 12:10 pm
I’m also lost in my apple dreams. I guess Apple is not for South Asia.