Vox - www.voxinc.com

voxinc

apple3

The wait was long, but the folks in line were extremely pleasant and kind. People in line were making food runs and buying coffee or sandwiches for many in the line. As a business owner in the area, I did some networking with another guy in the line and we agreed to set a date to meet for coffee and talk about working together on some projects.

The staff were professional and came out every few hours to update us and poll us on who was purchasing what size model. When it came closer to selling time, those who would not receive a phone because of how far back they were in line were informed of their options -- go to another location or purchase and have the phone shipped to their home.

When 6 pm rolled around, 6 people were let in at a time to handle their transactions. While the staff struggled a bit with processing this new and different transaction, they were pleasant and polite and thanked us for our business.

I've read so much about AT&T not being a very beloved carrier, but we've had nothing but great service from them. I had no issues when I ported my Sprint cell number to them about 4 months ago, and I just completed the port of my business landline to a second line on my AT&T wireless account. Their porting department was professional, helpful and informative. We are very pleased with AT&T and our experience to date.

nmrubinoff

Saturday I drove out to the Cost Mesa Apple store in the afternoon to attend a free workshop on the features of the iPhones. I then learned that they still had 8Gs left first thing in the morning as well as were continuing to sell 4Gs. At least I was able to have one in my hands and play with it some to soothe my frustration of not having one yet.

On the bright side, maybe by the time I actually get mine, the whole porting over from another carrier will be smoother. More to come on the transition from Sprint later...

SandraSS

tomesnyder

@friktionn: I think that really depends on the representative. I've been able to answer just about every question that's been thrown at me about the phone in store. But that isn't my point. What you need to realize is that the rep told the customer the phone is meant for consumers because it IS. In fact, go to any AT&T store, they'll tell you that corporate accounts and the iPhone are NOT compatible. In order to activate the iPhone, it has to be a personal or Family Talk line. Just about every customer I've had trying to get their service activated because it didn't work at home, it's because it was a corporate account. About which we can't do anything about in store because we can't activate the iPhones. So please realize that this isn't an "AT&T vs Apple" issue, it's just a "We're actually telling you the truth -- WE CAN'T HELP YOU" issue.

Woosta

The problem is not you or the other AT&T employees as persons, so don't take it personally. The problem is with the AT&T corporate culture and the cellphone industry. You offer excuses like there were more employees in the Apple store, that they had better equipment, that your manager wouldn't tell the people in line when they were running out, that your systems took longer than just swiping a card. Well, there you have it. These are excuses. The solution is for AT&T and others to emulate Apple. And if they do, the customers -- and employees -- will be happier. Solve the problem by adding employees, more customer service orientation, less bureaucracy, faster service, less sleaze.

ericstoltz

Not only that, but when a customer was interested in the business uses of the iPhone, the representative said "oh, it's mostly for consumers, not business users".

He's DEFINITELY not who Apple Inc needs speaking for their phones.

friktionn

DancnSteve

There are a few things you do have to know, however. a) Apple stores have a lot more employees than us, at least yesterday when I went into the (crowded) Apple Store, and there were about as many employees standing around to help as there were customers in the store. b) The reason we didn't tell anybody things like availability or waiting times was because we couldn't. The only person who knew how many iPhones we had in stock was my manager, who had them locked in a safe until the launch happened. She wasn't allowed to tell us, let alone the people waiting outside. I'd like to remind you that there are codes of business restricting people from saying everything they know. On top of that, unless you were speaking directly to a manager, the employees who you asked probably didn't know. As for waiting times, the iPhone checkout process is different from other phones, and because we haven't done it before, we had NO IDEA how long it would take. We estimated a few minutes per customer, but some took longer than others due to credit checks or other issues that arose. We also don't have those fancy wireless credit card "swipe your card, grab a phone and leave all in three seconds" machines that Apple Stores had.

I guess what I'm saying is that you can't judge the entirety of AT&T stores based on your own bad experience at one. I won't go far enough to tell you that you didn't have a bad experience -- I'm sure you did and I apologize for that -- but I don't like your generalization. We did everything we were allowed to do to keep our customers informed and to get them in and out quickly.

Woosta

A decent store sales rep would bring in $40K with the better ones bringing in $60-$80. There was enough demand for jobs that people either took care of customers or were replaced by one of the six people looking for the job.

I will grant you that I left before AT&T went GSM-only and I heard what a charlie foxtrot that turned into.

It's disappointing to see what AT&T has turned into; it's also disappointing that things didn't used to be that way.

Monoplex

Here are the details:

The 3G iPhone will appear on ATT's roster, while an enhanced EDGE iphone (like Fine Edge) will appear on T-Mobile's. This is how the deal works.

As T-Mobile operates over 6000 Hotspot locations, this is a good deal with packaging WiFi with the iPhone. ATT thinks it will be the only carrier, just like IBM thought they would be the only company supplying chips to Apple. As you can now see, that is not the case. Hello Intel.

So, there you have it, the story starts here!

w0ot!

StackyBotrus

Herr_Niemand

An Apple employee was arguing with the manager of this AT&T store as I walked in about how they were supposed to take about 5 minutes per customer to sell the phones (this AT&T store is the closest one to Cupertino).

The next day I strolled into the Santa Clara Apple store in Valley Fair mall at 4PM, casually asked if they still had iPhones, and the guy asked me how many I wanted (I still needed one for me since the first was for my wife) and had me checked out by 4:04pm.

Moral of the story, go to an Apple store if you still want an iPhone rather than the crazy people on eBay, Craigslist or at AT&T stores. At least Apple seems to to care to provide a good end-user experience.

nil

The next day (Saturday), I went to the Apple store at Valley Fair mall in Santa Clara, strolling in at about 4pm. I asked someone standing around if they still had any iPhones and he said "We still have 4GB models, how many do you want?" and he checked me out on the spot, and by 4:04pm I had my own iPhone (the first from the AT&T store was for my wife). Had I known the Apple store would have that much in stock, I would have just skipped the lines on Friday. This was the most pleasant shopping experience I've ever had for a new device.

The AT&T store was miserable by comparison. AT&T's computers were terribly slow, so that even when I was being served, it took the computer 25 minutes just to do the checkout. I didn't even have to do a credit check since I started a Cingular account three months earlier for my N95. It should have been simple like the Apple store at 4-5 minutes per customer. An apple employee wandered by the AT&T store and seemed rather livid with the manager (this AT&T store is the closest one to Apple's Cupertino offices), so maybe the process will change, but if you want an iPhone, skip the crazy people on eBay or at AT&T stores and just walk into an Apple store and buy one.

nil

We decided to stick around for a few minutes to assess the situation, and the doors opened and someone walked out with an AT&T bag, holding what we presumed to be a new iPhone. They then let the next person in line in. Apparently there were SO many people that store capacity was full, or at least they wanted to keep a handle on it.. but they were taking forever.

And when my boyfriend, the complete antithesis to an Apple fanboy, asked if he could see a non-iPhone that he's been meaning to check out, the guys at the door just told us we had to wait in line. At least they said sorry.

jhuang

I've done business with the Apple store many times in the past and I'm very glad I went there over AT&T.

dialtone

Galley

The AT&T store folks came out multiple times during the day with free water bottles. One guy who I think was the assistant manager made a lot of sports analogies, but very little info (couldn't say how many iphones they had other then "I think we have enough for everyone in line" at like 9am or 10am, and wouldn't talk accessories until six). One woman (who I think was the real manager) was just as sparse on real info, but managed to be "warmer" about it. I would guess it was AT&T policy to be mum on info, not the store's choice.

The Starbucks (two doors down) sent a guy out to take orders (and deliver) around 5pm or so. The something-or-other Panda handed out free samples (around 1pm) while I was employing my "urban foraging" skills to score a sun umbrella from Linens And Things.

I can't say what they did when they ran out of units since my wife & I were number 4 and 5 in line. I can say they processed people slowly. They spent way too much time talking about plans they couldn't give you (I mostly escaped becuse I already had an AT&T plan but they still wanted to circle it and explain what I already had), attempting to sell me U-verse ("your iPhone uses WiFi, if you buy U-verse not only do you get way fast internet at home but you can roam onto AT&T's WiFi network for free!" -- even after I told them there was no U-verse where I live (which is true, or I would already have bought it).

I think they took 20 minutes or so to process my order & we were still the first out the door (people applauded).

I hear the nearby Apple store handed out tee shirts, and still had iPhones when they closed (8G ones). So maybe when the iPhone 2 comes out I'll wait at the Apple store instead. And won't bother to show up at 4am when 3pm would have done.

Stripes

boicraig

I stopped into an AT&T store on Saturday to see if they had any different accessories, and overheard one rep whispering to a customer who'd come into the store to get an 8GB iPhone to "not waste his money. A Treo will do everything that thing will do."

'Course, they were also OUT of the 8GB models...

ghmlco

Thelonius

"My guess is...he was on an old AT&T Wireless rate plan (pre-Cingular)...Again, they were just trying to give him all the info he needed before he made the purchase and was subject to the Apple's 10% restocking."

bingo. i'm glad i called AT&T, and props to the rep i talked to in the store because she knew as soon as i said "pre-cingular" that i wouldn't be able to merely add a data plan.

it's off-topic, but i think it bears repeating if it'll save people the 10% restocking fee: if your plan is an old AT&T wireless/pre-cingular plan, you cannot simply add the data plan, and you can't activate an iPhone without starting a new plan.

ScotteusMaximus

markant

But it was the harsh realization that they wouldn't honor corporate business accounts and that the store was only given 20 iPones -- or so I was told -- that really killed the whole experience for me. Full story at observingpolarity.com.

mcreative

Of course, the mayor was waiting at place #3 in line - so that might have had something to do with it.

The AT&T rep from Atlanta walked about 100 miles during the noon-6pm shift, from head to toe of the line, back and forth, over and over, in large white heels no less.. in fact her whole ensemble outfit was white... much as u imagine angels to be, she was a rather comely lady - and she was as entertaining as particularly serious.

By 6pm, flacks from Jersey and other nether regions of AT&T's empire had converged at the 16th St location, with sales all going pretty smoothly. 8 gawkers were matched by hawkers in the store at all times. Once one customer bought or at least left the premises, next in line outside entered. From spot #12, I was driving home happy at 6:30. Efficient.

All local TV networks had their A-Team reporters come down - what with the mayor and all - and that might have helped the process get done a bit quicker. u think?

AT&T has yet to suck... the Edge is faster than advertised...

and the phone, o the beautiful phone, still gleams bright in its black and silver coat
nothing will ever sully its brilliance.
not for a while at least

the mayor was still in the store when i left

petelobl

The rep was knowledgeable, friendly, and agreed sotto voce that $75 after rebate for a Blackjack was a hell of a better deal than the iPhone. He also apologized for the length of time it took to do a service activation, which is interminable on their automated "here's the boilerplate" phone line.

Anyhoo, the upshot is that while I'm not a big cheerleader for the company generally, I'd cut 'em a little slack on this.

sammy baby

tomesnyder

I left work at 5pm thinking I would stop by the store, check-out the line and if it wasn't too long I would jump in...

I arrived about 5:10, was in line within a few moments with a place about 27 from the front. I proceeded to sit there for a while occasionally chatting with the others near me until about 5:45.

At 5:45 they tightened-up the line and everybody got a little more excited. We waited until 6pm when a sight cheer went up from teh line and we began to move forward as the first lucky few were let in...

We steadily filed closer along the side of the building where the line was wrapped. as I neared the front corner the 10th or 11th customer was let in and immediately walked-out. I wasn't quite sure what had happened so I stayed-put but I noticed about 6 of the people in front of me walk away.

About 10 minutes later (it took until 6:40pm) I reached the corner and I heard as it was announced to the next person entering that there were only 4gb models left. This didn't seem to matter to that person but I and another person took off at that point... I'd heard it with my own 2 ears that they'd either ordered poorly or been supplied poorly in regards to the 8gb model. In one case I might eventually forgive them, but in the other I'll never be a customer in their location again...

That they'd run out of a model and not made a general announcement was, to me, the rudest thing they could have done to people who'd been waiting, in some cases, for hours. (possibly days for some in front of me, I don't know when the waiting started locally)

I understand they may have been wanting to salvage some business from those of us who'd wanted, specifically, the 8gb iphone. But, for me they lost any chance of my business.

danzilla

6pm the store opens, only 7 people allowed in. We're excited, won't be long now. 6:10, same 7 people still in there. 6:20 I go over to the part of the line by the window and ask another guy in line what's up - he can see the computer screens of the sales assistants. Computers crashed, he said, and sure enough I could see the Microsoft Windows Blue Screen of Death on their machines.

6:45pm there's a stir and mild applause - a customer has completed a transaction! 45 minutes and ONE GUY has an iPhone. I called 411 and got the store's #. The AT&T employee who answered, when I told him I was outside in the line, said "we'll tell you something when we have something to tell you" and hung up.

By 7:30, 3 of the original group of 7 were still in the store so one of the guys in line volunteered to run over to the Apple Cube and call someone in our line to let us know what was up. He called and said the Cube line was big but moving, about 50 people at a time being let in every few minutes. We had been afraid of massive crowds at the Cube but clearly this AT&T store was a losing proposition.

Got to the Cube, called back to another guy in the AT&T line (hi UBS!) to say "get over here," stood outside for at most 10 minutes, got ushered in by a crowd of cheering Apple employees and got met at the bottom of the stairs by more happy Apple people who gave us iPhones and completed our purchases in under 5 minutes.

What a contrast. AT&T has a long way to go in terms of customer service and network infrastructure, although unlike some others our activation with new phone numbers went flawlessly.

It was worth it though. The iPhone is everything I had hoped for, and more.

MidtownMac

iPhone not available for business plans

zippyZ

And yes their C/S has won many many awards.

zippyZ

I also guess that you were (and still are) on a Cingular plan and that is why you only had to choose a data plan.

dink23

I didn't have to buy a new plan. During the setup on iTunes, I was informed of the $20 data plan, accepted it, and just moved on. If someone is telling you that you need a new plan, I would ask to speak with management (the AT&T store reps work on partial commissions). If management gives you the same song-and-dance, then go to a different store.

Seriously. All I did was tell them I was replacing an existing phone number on my plan, and off I went. No fuss, no muss.

psavas

My experience at apple stores is always positive but last night was astonishing. My wife and I went to the mall, had dinner and got in line around 6:15pm. The apple employees were interacting, handing out water and keeping us as informed as possible about whether or not there were still phones available. By 7:00pm we were in the car driving home.

What is clear to me, an AT&T customer since 1996, is that it's business as usual at AT&T but the real revolution with iPhone is that Apple has pole vaulted the competition and seriously raised the bar on usability, service and the user experience both in and around the product.

avatar74

hbgone

The other store employees were great as well, and the line was short (under 50 people). My daughter wanted an iPhone really bad agyer seeing mine, so my wife and I went back tp the store around 7PM. To my surprise, they still had an 8 GB left, which we bought.

MacManiac

No on wants to drop a crap load of money to get an expensive gadget that's almost as good as the one that costs a bit more.

thinkthis

nice friendly AT&T people but obviously a big company that did not care about customers or efficiency.

While in line, I remarked "this is why Apple stores are so successful"

toccoa3

Activating with AT&T was painful, because I was already an AT&T customer. Unfortunately I'm a "business" customer (I have a blackberry phone on a "business" data plan), and the iPhone is a "consumer" phone, so they refuse to activate it on my account to replace the blackberry. And they are apparently unable to migrate a phone number from a "business" account to a "consumer" account. The people that might potentially be able to convert my account are only available Monday-Friday, 9-5. This means that due to internal AT&T politics, my iPhone is a paperwork until at least Monday.

To be fair, they did offer to activate the iPhone with a new account with a new phone number, because they know how to do that. Alternatively, I could transfer my account to another carrier, and then back to AT&T, since they're required by law to be able to do that. I didn't pursue those options for some reason.

Good thing no other blackberry users would be tempted to move to the iPhone, or AT&T customer support would be having a terrible couple of days.

laird

richard8a

macmedics

By the way, iPhones can only be activated on your own computer at home with iTunes. In case you wondered, it's [www.apple.com] ... It's a little-known website, but it tells you just about everything you need to know.

richard8a

Firemedic510

They said they ran out of the iphones this morning but the manager drove to a smaller town 45 mins away and got theirs.

:)

Please place your bids here for me to go get you one.

Oh and the ATT wait was not from activation...you do that at home on your mac or pc :)

zippyZ

nosauten

So I'll sit back and wish that Apple would have had the sense to go into the wireless business ala Boost.

Alershka

Apple store on the other hand do not run credit and they cannot accept deposits, so this might explain some of the differences between the sales practices.

dink23

TC2COOL

Later on, around 11:30 PM, I decided to check the iPhone inventory page at apple.com. All three Apple stores near me still had "green lights". I called the closest store and they said they had plenty of 8GBers. Drove down there and picked one up.

My experience at the Apple store was top notch compared to the AT&T store. The biggest surprise is the ability to activate thru iTunes. That's an industry changing process. No more standing around some kiosk or store waiting for some sales associate to set up your account. The process was very smooth for me since I was already a customer. My iPhone was up and running in a couple of minutes.

Shabbis

Arrived at 3:00 PM and there were 14 people in line ahead of me. By 6:00 the line had grown to about 56 people. The AT&T employees were very nice to us all, handing out waters and stuff the whole time. About once and hour the manager would stroll the line giving out info updates and answering questions he could. It was a reassuring experience.

About 5:00 he handed out some paperwork for those unfamiliar with the iPhone, the rate plans and process for signing up and the costs of the phones and accessories in stock. By 5:30 he walked the line announcing how many phones were in and ready to sell but not a breakdown of 4 gigi and 8 gig. He counted the line and announced that he had enough for everyone. At 5:45 he announced the breakdown of 40 8 gig and 20 4 gig. He also assured those who looked like they would miss the 8 gig that more would arrive on Saturday.

Once inside it was a quality experience, and I did not expect that in a non Apple store. No pressure or hard sell, just 4 or 8gig and they did ask one if I wanted any accessories. A prompt no ended that. My clerk fumbled on his computer putting in my info and had to redo it once, the manager was right there to make sure he did it right (I think he was in training).

I would give it a 8.5 out of 10 for the experience. Overall it was the best cell phone store experience I ever had.

Way to go Apple and AT&T. I hope there are many successful years for this partnership in the future.

graydon

A strolling player

Once the store finally opened at 6 pm - 5 people were allowed to enter the store. Additional customers could enter as soon as a previous customer left the store.

Some people took 15 minutes or more inside the store, because they felt compelled to play with the iPhone display after their purchase. This of course upset the crowed outside.

However, things did move along fairly quickly after the initial 10 people entered the store.

I purchased my iPhone and a case, as well as completed the pre-credit check in no time at all. My experience was good all the way around - no complaints.

The iPhone works as advertised, as well as the registration process.

I love my iPhone!!!

clearbox

Of course, when I got to the SoHo Apple store, there were plenty an the line was very short. The Apple employees were courteous and very efficient.

It seems like Apple took this release far more seriously than AT&T. They certainly have a stronger emphasis on customer satisfaction.

jk

Murphmeister

It was 20 years ago, not that long after divestiture (what they called the breaking up of their monopoly) and they still had no idea how to compete in the marketplace. They still acted as if they were a monopoly and could do whatever they wanted without people jumping ship to another carrier. Plus, they treated their employees like crap. That's where I met my best friend and he will also tell you how horrible it was.

Knowing how slow they were to adopt new business tactics in the mid-80's it doesn't surprise me that they'd still be acting like they have no competition and you either like it or not.

rsquared

I had my 8 GB in my hands before 6:35 - they sold us the phones, then had a line for accessories (got a little case for it). By 6:45, I was climbing on my motorcycle to go home.

Now, after I got home and tried activation, things sorta... stopped...

(Really old calling plan, and when I ran things through iTunes, I hit the "you will receive an email confirmation" brick wall - but the AT&T folks have been very, very nice and apologetic on the phone while telling me I was dead in the water.

cirby

tremans

So, I was number 69 in line. The staff was outside trying to get the crowd pumped up. Which wasn't really working. So I get into the store at about 6:45 pm. They only allowed 9 people in the store at once. One ticket holder per sales agent.
Anyways, I got home and ate and then decided to do the activation. WELL, my iTunes said it didn't have a sim card in the phone. So I went back to the store. They messed with the sim card and said to try again. I came home, and what do you know. It didn't work, so I called Apple and they said to go get a new sim card in the morning.

So, I awoke this morning and went to the AT&T store to get a new sim card. This time I was armed with my Macbook. Well, the people at the store looked at it and I showed them the error message. So we determined that it was a bad phone. Well, I guess Apple wants the DOA phones shipped back to them to be fixed.

This put me in a bad spot since my Razr was now dead I was going to have to buy a new phone till my iPhone was going to be able to be replaced. But, I was able to talk the AT&T rep into letting me exchange the broken iPhone for a new one. Which they are not supposed to do. Needless to say, I was super pleased with AT&T. But I'm one of the customers that has always had a great experience with them.

IrritatedJones

you say that you've been with AT&T since before the buyout? did you ever start a new plan since then, or are you still renewing your old AT&T plan? i was told by a few different AT&T reps that i wouldn't be able to add the $20 data plan, i'd have to transition over to an entirely new plan altogether.

ScotteusMaximus

zak42

So I have called AT&T going on 6 times where the phone will just ring and ring with no answer like they have left the building.

A co-worker told me he stopped by and they were all out of iPhones, if that is the case what are they so "busy" doing if they have no iPhone business to transact?!?!

I am not going to shoot down the hopes of getting an iPhone but this certainly is not helping what-so-ever.

WD40

psavas

jedibugs

JJ_Dub

I went back to the Apple store, still with a line, and mentioned to an employee that I just wanted to take a look at the phone. No problem he said. He went back in the store and came out with not one, but 5 iPhones for myself and other bystanders to interact with. Talk about excellent service.

So what did I do with my hands on the Lord's Phone? I made a phone call to a buddy in news, telling him I'd been molested by the iPhone. It was a glorious feeling.

I'll be purchasing one when my contract with Verizon is up in a year. Perfect timing for Apple to work out the kinks, and me to get my index finger up to par.

grafxguy

kyledwards

AT&T even had bags that would seal with some glue so that their customers wouldn't try and sneak in extra accessories on their way out of the back door by the dumpsters.

I had not thought that the apple store would have had enough units so I went to the AT&T store, but I would have preferred the hospitality over not getting a unit if I had the option.

jrlcopy

tetzel1517

QWERTYthon

AT&T and Verizon see themselves as providing things that people will want no matter how poorly they treat their customers.

bobvilla

after debating whether or not to buy an iPhone, i eventually decided to wait for the 3G version whenever it comes out. my friend and i were still itching to play around with one, so we went to the apple store in la jolla, CA around 6 PM.

the scene was crazy. the line stretched all the way through the food court, and the apple employees were chanting and cheering as each customer left the store.

amused, we drove over to an AT&T store to check out the scene there. there were probably less than 50 people in line, but it looked more like the line for a soup kitchen than an overpriced gadget. everybody looked anxious and dejected, and there was no enthusiasm.

the AT&T drones only let 1 or 2 people in every 10 minutes. there were even 3 orange shirted workers just standing around, talking with one another. any attempts to find out how many iPhones were left were fruitless until the manager came out an hour later to tell people that they were out of the 8GB model and only had 3 of the 4GB version left.

then he went into this whole spiel about how they were doing a "direct fulfillment" plan, which was pretty much a preorder for a product that's already been released. he couldn't say how long it would take to get your iPhone, only that you would eventually get one. at that point, the crowd dispersed.

ScotteusMaximus

All the Apple stores had to do was ring the product up and let the customer activate their phone thru iTunes.

animadverto