News, Reviews and more from Australia's Macintosh Authority
News, Reviews and more from Australia's Macintosh Authority
ADVERTISEMENT
Apple now offers US customers the ability to start purchasing their iPhone online and pick it up in person, at a nearby Apple retail store.
The new page on Apple’s Web site, for customers in the United States, enables you to enter your billing information, review your eligibility and pricing for the iPhone, and select the appropriate AT&T rate plan.
The new procedure is available to new iPhone customers and people upgrading from original iPhones alike. You can also use the Web page to add a new iPhone to your existing AT&T account.
Once you’ve completed the process, you identify the Apple Retail Store closest to you, and indicate when you can come in to complete your purchase. Apple then arranges for a Specialist in the store to help you “personalise” your iPhone 3G, teach you how to make calls, use the phone to browse the Web, receive e-mail and more.
The new procedure is aimed at streamlining the vetting process for AT&T — existing iPhone customers must verify their accounts, and new customers submit data for an AT&T credit check.
Committing to get an iPhone 3G online using Apple’s new page doesn’t actually guarantee you that there will be one waiting for you at the store when you get there. You pay for the iPhone only after you’ve arrived at the store, and Apple notes that iPhone 3Gs are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. But using the new page, you can at least save some time once you arrive in the store to get your phone.
Apple Australia has been contacted regarding Australian availability of the program.
Apple sold 2.3 million Macs and 22.1 million iPods during the holiday shopping season, helping the company turn a $US1.58-billion profit during its fiscal first quarter. The Mac totals mark the third consecutive quarter that Apple has set a quarterly sales record for its desktops and laptops. The Mac totals mark the third consecutive quarter that Apple has set a quarterly sales record for its desktops and laptops. For the quarter ended December 31, Apple reported a profit of $US1.76 a share on revenue of $US9.6 billion.
Jim Dalrymple,Philips Michaels and Peter Cohen | Jan 23, 2008
This morning Apple announced a strong push to help companies incorporate the iPhone into their enterprise environment, putting RIM's popular BlackBerry handheld devices squarely in its sights. The changes will come in a forthcoming release of iPhone software. During an event held at the company's Cupertino headquarters, Apple senior vice president of product marketing Phil Schiller announced the company's plans. "We've been hard at work trying to understand what it takes to bring the iPhone out across the enterprise," he told guests. The list of features that Apple describes as important to enterprise end users includes "push-based" e-mail, calendar info and contact management; additional support for Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) including Cisco IPsec; and two-factor authentication, certificates and identities.
Peter Cohen | Mar 7, 2008
Apple has acquired a fabless semiconductor company, PA Semi, according to a report at Forbes.com. PA Semi designs energy efficient processors based on the Power architecture that Apple used in its Macintosh computers for many years before adopting Intel's x86 chips.
Mikael Ricknas | Apr 23, 2008
Strong demand for Macs driven by record laptop sales helped Apple turn a $US1.05 billion profit for its fiscal second quarter. The company sold 2.2 million Macs from January to March, helping drive sales of $US7.51 billion for the strongest March quarter in Apple’s history. Apple’s profit rose 36 percent from the second quarter of 2007, with revenue rising 43 percent. The company reported earnings per share of $US1.16 for the just-completed second quarter, a 33-percent rise over last year’s number.
Jim Dalrymple and Philips Michaels | Apr 25, 2008
As I type these words, I am waiting for Apple's Developer Connection web site to ease up sufficiently for me to download the long-awaited Software Developer Kit for the iPhone (and iPod touch, just by the by). In a way, I hate developer-oriented announcements — "here's a really cool thing we're working on, and it's available now, and hoi polloi can have it in about six months". Actually, it's the six months I hate.
