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How good of an idea is it to buy from the online Store?

M

mac000

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Sep 6, 2005
679
0
So i want to order a MacBook from Apple.com, now i know the MacBook box is very thin. Honestly how safe is it to order from apple.com have them ship my laptop via fedex/ups and receive my new laptop in "happy condition"

I can just see it now, FedEx playing hot potato with the box that has my laptop in it.

any thoughts? thanks people
 
I really wouldnt worry about it. Big companies like this get their stuff to their customers in tip-top shape 98% of the time. And if not, contact Apple and tell them it was DOA and they should replace it right away.
 
i was planning to get my macbook online, but i'm gonna go to the apple store...
but if i go there, i can still get edu discounts /w free nano right? i dont' have student id card yet, so an acceptance letter is good enough to prove i'm a student?
 
jvan said:
i was planning to get my macbook online, but i'm gonna go to the apple store...
but if i go there, i can still get edu discounts /w free nano right? i dont' have student id card yet, so an acceptance letter is good enough to prove i'm a student?
Click to expand...

Possibly, I am not too sure though. I know online, all you have to do is find your school. Only once too have they decided to check to see if I was actually a student. Just had to send a photocopy of my school id if I remember correctly
 
jvan said:
i was planning to get my macbook online, but i'm gonna go to the apple store...
but if i go there, i can still get edu discounts /w free nano right? i dont' have student id card yet, so an acceptance letter is good enough to prove i'm a student?
Click to expand...
You should be fine with that, although I am not certain.
 
They'll take an ID, acceptance letter... really anything. Just make sure you have identification if you're not bringing a school photo ID.
 
I suggest you go to the store to get it. I ordered my ibook last year from the online store. I didn't have any problems from Apple but was very unhappy with how Fedex handled my shipment. I had them deliver it to a relative's address since I was going to be out of town at the time of delivery. When I got back I found out the they had been unable to get into my relative's apartment building so they just left my package on the doorstep. Thank god no one swipped it, but that plus several other Fedex screwups around the same time caused me to not have anything delivered through them.

As I said, the Apple online store is good but I won't use it again unless there is another delivery options.
 
going off what Yoursh said, the person delivering often doesn't require a signature even though they're supposed to... so if you live in a fairly secluded area this is ok, but if you live in a crowded area where someone might steal a box siting on your doorstep (they will ring the doorbell, but say you're not home at the time...), then I would be wary of ordering online.

However if mishandling the box is all you have to worry about I'm sure it will be fine. I've gotten 2 laptops online now and neither have been mishandled at all.
 
Uh....

mac000 said:
So i want to order a MacBook from Apple.com, now i know the MacBook box is very thin. Honestly how safe is it to order from apple.com have them ship my laptop via fedex/ups and receive my new laptop in "happy condition"

I can just see it now, FedEx playing hot potato with the box that has my laptop in it.

any thoughts? thanks people
Click to expand...

How do you think the Macbook gets to the Apple Store? Or any retail store? Unless you are actually buying your Macbook in China, they will always be shipped SOMEWHERE...
 
mac000 said:
So i want to order a MacBook from Apple.com, now i know the MacBook box is very thin. Honestly how safe is it to order from apple.com have them ship my laptop via fedex/ups and receive my new laptop in "happy condition"

I can just see it now, FedEx playing hot potato with the box that has my laptop in it.

any thoughts? thanks people
Click to expand...

Thin box? You realize they pack it in a second box right?
 
mmmcheese said:
Thin box? You realize they pack it in a second box right?
Click to expand...
Not always... My iMac came in it's Appley white box... which wasn't white by the time I got it. :p
 
jvan said:
i was planning to get my macbook online, but i'm gonna go to the apple store...
but if i go there, i can still get edu discounts /w free nano right? i dont' have student id card yet, so an acceptance letter is good enough to prove i'm a student?
Click to expand...


Just so you aren't surprised at the store...

You'll pay the EDU price for the nano and then have to fill in rebate forms to get reimbursed. It is free, but you have to front the money for a bit.
 
gregio said:
They'll take an ID, acceptance letter... really anything. Just make sure you have identification if you're not bringing a school photo ID.
Click to expand...

Acceptance letters don't count, usually. They prove that you got into a school, but not that you actually go there. A copy of a class schedule or bill would be a better form of documentation, and you'll probably have to have a photo ID to verify that you're the person the document refers to.
 
feelthefire said:
Acceptance letters don't count, usually. They prove that you got into a school, but not that you actually go there. A copy of a class schedule or bill would be a better form of documentation, and you'll probably have to have a photo ID to verify that you're the person the document refers to.
Click to expand...

They're not that strict.

My friend got an EDU discount at the Apple store for showing his acceptance letter to a advanced summer program for high school kids at Carnegie Mellon.

As long as you're affiliated with the college in some way, you're good to go.


As far as shipping goes...I've ordered every electronics product I own, off of the internet, and they all work well.
 
appleretailguy said:
How do you think the Macbook gets to the Apple Store? Or any retail store? Unless you are actually buying your Macbook in China, they will always be shipped SOMEWHERE...
Click to expand...

Yes, they do get it shipped, however they most likely come to them on Pallets shrink wrapped for bulk shipping. they don't ship individual boxes to stores usually. I am very familiar with the retail/shipping industry and there are many companies that have had to rethink their packaging over the last 10 year with the increase in UPS/FED shipping for so many products, especially electronics. Most good companies put them in additional boxes to ship like Amazon, etc which helps protect them, however I have received things in original boxes that were not sturdy enough to be shipped individually, but if they were in a larger box with many or on a pallet of similar products they would have been fine.

I would say if you can get it at an Apple store get it there, if not, obviously your option is to get it online. I prefer to walk out of a store with it than trust it to dozens of human hands tossing, shoving, throwing the boxes around. Remember, in some of those Fed Ex boxes that are stacked on your computer box are very heavy things!!
 
i hate going to the apple store to buy anything. i swear

anyone else have the classic " no i dont want to buy applecare right now, but they're bring it out anyway and try to scan it" happen to them? Twice for me now, such jerks.
 
Now is not a good time to buy a MB from the online store as they are a little backlogged. My guess is that it will be at least until the beginning of August until you see the laptop. Thus if you want something sooner, find another place to buy the MB at.
 
about 2 weeks ago I received 2 MBPs from the online store thru FedEx and both boxes were perfectly fine. I was out when they stopped by so they left a note that they would come by the following day and they did... FedEx has never left me a product that needed a signature without my being there... just my .02
 
Actually...

feelthefire said:
Acceptance letters don't count, usually. They prove that you got into a school, but not that you actually go there. A copy of a class schedule or bill would be a better form of documentation, and you'll probably have to have a photo ID to verify that you're the person the document refers to.
Click to expand...

Acceptance letter plus ID counts...I have even had someone sign in to a school website and checked their driver's license to make sure the names match before and my managers had no problem with that.

Granted, acceptance letters usually only work in July or August and especially if the school is out of state (because, obviously, if the school was right down the street the kid should already have an ID). If you're nice about it, Apple Retail stores usually don't put up much of a fuss.
 
I ordered my iBook online and received it with no problems.

A couple of things to consider:
1. If you want to BTO (build to order) then you have to order online. The stores have limited configurations.

2. FedEx is not suppose to leave the Apple order without signature. This is a special agreement they have with Apple. So you have to be home to receive it or be prepared to pick it up.
 
devilot said:
Not always... My iMac came in it's Appley white box... which wasn't white by the time I got it. :p
Click to expand...

My iMac came double boxed. I oredered a Macbook for my brother-in-law
and his came double boxed as well. Could be something new though, my other machines didn't come double boxed, and they came pretty beat up sometimes.
 
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