Thursday, April 3, 2008

iPod Update and the Apple Store

So, after lots of deliberation, I finally caved. I purchased the new 2GB iPod Shuffle for $70. Realizing that I did not want the player to be used for videos, so really it limited my options, if I were to get an iPod, the Shuffle was really my only choice. Once I had made my decision, I was off to Yorkdale Mall in Toronto to visit the Apple Store. Having read reviews of the Shuffle online, I had been introduced to the “Amazing” Apple Store. When I arrived, just as all the articles stated, it was one of the busiest stores in the entire mall. I went in, looked around and found the Shuffles attached to a table with some sort recaps of the technology that I could be purchasing. At the store, I was really interested in seeing the colours. Since the blue was too blue, and the green was too green, I chose the classic silver look and now all I needed was some help. Standing in the middle of the Apple Store, I felt like a deer caught in the headlights as everyone else seemed to know how to maneuver about. There was a group of employees standing talking, but no one was around to help me. I waited another 5 minutes or so, before I finally was sick of waiting and approached the group of “Experts”, who might I say were quite intimidating, and asked if one of them could help me. I must have looked ridiculous wandering around, looking at the same product for so long, but I honestly was not ‘cool’ enough to understand the concept of the store. The Expert then jumped right into it, assuming that I knew all about the products, which in this case, was the truth, and asked “what I would like to purchase?” I answered knowingly stating “The Silver 2GB iPod Shuffle”. The employee then went behind the counter, grabbed the box, came back out and question my method of payment. Visa it was. She took a wireless checkout item, and completed all my information in the middle of the store, completing the transaction with my receipt being sent to my email account. I walked out of the store carrying a new iPod and felt like I knew how to work the Apple Store now.

Currently, I am still enjoying my Shuffle and it seems to be working well. Apple sent me a survey to see how I enjoyed my experience at the Apple store. Upon completing it, I felt even more part of the culture. Feeling somewhat guilty about this, especially after this class, I simply brushed it off, and went on walking with my white earbuds.

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