Apple Rolls Out the iPad

Today, was the day that Apple fans have been waiting for. The day the iPad finally went on sale. I went to Bally's to workout and then decided to head over to the nearest Apple store. My intentions were not to buy an iPad but merely see what was up, and try one out for myself. My plans were to buy the 3G version that is supposed to come out later this month.

I knew there would be lines at Apple stores in places like Palo Alto, San Francisco, and New York. I did not think there would be such a thing really at the store in Oak Brook, Illinois.

I got to the store around 1-1:30-ish in the afternoon. And the scene I saw is shown in the picture below:

Front of Apple Store for the iPad Release

The lines were gone by now, but I asked someone working at the store about them, and there was a fairly long line waiting outside, ready for the Apple store to open its doors. Even at the time I shot this picture with my iPhone the doors were propped wide open and people were spilling out of the store (its a little hard to see in this photo). And most of the people were towards the front (where the demo iPads were on display). All the Apple staff for the store were out in full force, and, even with all the people who showed up, there were plenty of staff members there to serve you and answer your questions.

The place had a festive atmosphere and I started getting strong urges to buy a Wifi only iPad right there on the spot!

At the tables where the tethered iPad demo units were on display, you actually had to stand in an impromptu line to get a chance to use one. I took the picture below as I was waiting to get my chance. I heard from one lady who worked there that there had been a customer who had hogged using one for nearly an hour! Fortunately for me, everyone I saw was polite and civil!

They look so thin! I was surprised that when I actually picked one up, it was heavier than it looked. But its still cool!

People Giving the iPad a Try

At the back of the store, behind the counter, they had iPad boxes stacked up in stack upon stack. Though most of them looked like they were reserved for people who pre-ordered.

No docking devices with or without keyboards were to be seen, but that was not surprising considering information on the web said they would come out later. What was surprising (at least to me) is that there were covers on sales for the iPad. These were supposed to be delayed too. But, at least in this store, they had plenty available. Below is a rather blurry picture I took of the covers for sales hanging on a display on the wall:

Blurry shot of iPad covers that are on sale

I came really close to buying one, but I walked out of the store escaping the energetic atmosphere of iPad seduction that permeated the place. Does that mean I'm not getting one?

Nope! I'm waiting... at least for now!

Christmas in October: Apple has Some Great Prices

Last night I went to the nearest Apple store. The main reasons I had were to get a copy of Snow Leopard for my iMac, and to find out how to get some network information on said iMac at the Genius Bar.

While I was waiting for my turn at the Genius Bar, I was browsing around the store and noticed the prices of Apple products. Most stuff that's in the news I've read focuses around all the new features of product X or Y, but I haven't seen much talking about pricing.

I happened to glance over at a copy of Final Cut Express on the shelf and looked at the price. $199? First thought was: "No. That can't be right." Next thought was, "This must be an upgrade copy." No it wasn't. I was amazed. Just for grins I checked out the price for Final Cut Studio. About a year ago I bought Final Cut Express which was kind of pushing my budget, and back then when I looked at the price of Final Cut Studio (the full blown used by movie studio version), the price was in the stratosphere! Way way out of my league!

But here I was looking at a price of $999. Not super cheap true. But compared to what it used to cost, amazing! What did it used to cost before when I had checked? More than what I paid for Final Cut Express that's for sure! It's been awhile but I'm pretty sure it was over $8,000. More like close to $10,000. I remember how not in my ball-park the price was that I am sure of!

Other things I noticed: MacBooks (not Pro) were $999 . And MacBook Pros way less than they used to cost with more features than before. Apple has had a reputation for having computers that are more expensive than PCs. This reputation just might be coming to an end.

iLife used to be $99, and iWorks was $99 dollars as well. But they had this nifty package that included the latest version of iLife and iWorks and Snow Leopard for $169. Sweet!

So, I ended up leaving the store with the iWorks/iLife/Snow Leopard box set, Final Cut Studio, a small cable from "Monster" allowing me to plug my iPhone into my car's stereo system, and a big kid-like smile on my face! It was the best Christmas ever! Oh wait! It's not actually Christmas is it. LOL. I think this holiday season Apple is gonna sell allot of stuff and gain even more market share.