Apple loves those big-sales stories, where they can announce they sold X million units over the first weekend. But if one of their biggest retail partners, Best Buy, withheld iPad 2s as they'd already reached their internal sales quota for that day, how would Apple react?
My guess is not very well. That tallies with what CrunchGear heard from a Best Buy employee, who claims that Apple's COO Tim Cook has been handling the knuckle-rapping himself—and dealt the chain a devastating blow: no more iPad 2s for them.
Now, this is all just hearsay at the moment, but if Apple were to withhold iPad 2s from sale in Best Buy, do you think that would make much of a difference? With shortages all over the country—indeed, the world—these tablets are proving difficult enough to come by already. Online shipping has just slid to under a month from Apple's website, and from what we've heard that's become the most favorable way to get one.
Messing about with store visits when stock is low is proving a headache for those still seeking one—but thankfully a few websites that search the stores around you for stock have recently come into action.
As to whether Apple has really blacklist Best Buy and is withholding iPad 2s from them for withholding iPad 2s to us, this is one time where you should sit back and watch what happens—but I certainly wouldn't be planning a day off work to tour the various local Best Buys in search of an iPad, just in case. [CrunchGear]
Image Credit: Ron Dauphin