Why Hasn’t Apple Offered Online Reservations For iPad 2 In All Stores?

Posted on April 4, 2011 by AppleBitch


For those eagle eyed and eager consumers looking to grab an iPad 2, purchasing internationally was an option that was worth considering, especially given that the rest of the world had to wait a little longer than US consumers. However, another small disparity seems to exist in the iPad 2 retail process, as it has been pointed out to us that Apple is allowing online reservations of iPad 2 in some Apple Stores beginning at 9pm the day prior to pick up. The question is, why wasn’t this done earlier and why wasn’t it allowed for all Apple Stores?

As an example, go to the webpage for the Apple Store in Regent Street, London and you will see a small box in the bottom left corner with the following text.

“Reserve an iPad after 9 pm for pickup the next day at your favourite Apple Retail Store. Reservations are based on availability. Shipments arrive regularly. Reserve Now”

However, if  you then pay a visit to the webpage for the flagship Apple Store on Fifth Avenue in New York, instead of an option to reserve an iPad 2, you are greeted with the following text.

“Get your new iPad at the Apple Retail Store and one of our Specialists will set it up just the way you want. iPad sales begin early at 8 a.m. Limit two per customer.”

It is therefore unclear why Apple decided to implement this policy in some Retail Stores, such as Paris and London, rather than others.  One of the biggest complaints passed on to us was the fact that there was no online advance reservations system set-up, despite the fact that it had been done for the first generation iPad.  The system worked very well then, so I’m not sure why Apple chose not to use it for the second generation model.

As Apple products become more and more popular, the demand in the first few days following a new product release is becoming much higher.  Rather than long lines outside Stores, should Apple perhaps consider making online reservations mandatory for new products in the first few days of release.  Their customer service is excellent, and this is one way which would improve the retail experience.

No Reservations…

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  • Chaz

    The problem with the way Apple has handled sales in its US retail stores is it is strongly biased against a person who works traditional hours. I recommend that they split the day’s allocation in half and sell half at 8-9 AM and the remainder at 6 PM so the working man or gal can get a fair shake. Doesn’t solve the scalper problem and may exacerbate it since the will get in line twice. Perhaps buyer’s hand should be sprayed with UV spray (just kidding).

  • Doug-St Louis MO

    OK, I got the distribution story today straight from an Apple store manager in St. Louis MO USA.

    The reason there is no online rez system with iPad 2 is that the rez system for iPhone 4 was a bust. They had about 50% no shows every day on those phones “reserved”, but their policy was they couldn’t sell these to walk up customers that same day, so they didn’t turn over the inventory quick enough. So you’ll never see this process again, at least in the US where we have untrustworthy buyers!

    The comment about business customers was spot on. This person also said if I had a biz account I could get an iPad within 24 hours at almost any store. They are holding back iPads every day for advance business reservations.

    So it’s really a 2 tier operation.

    My 64gb/3G/ATT is still slated for 4/21 ship date, no change since my 3/16 order date.

  • Steve

    I agree with Peabody, Apple should only allow 1 iPad per person for the first month or so. There are way too many resellers because of this.

    I also would like to see Apple offer business users a separate line for pickup like they did when the first one was released.

  • Prof. Peabody

    If all Apple stores did this, then there would be no point in lining up outside each day, so they should probably pick one method and go with it. Personally, I think this is the main problem with Apple’s policy right now is that it’s all over the map. I say, pick a way of doing things and stick with it in all stores.

    They will never do this, but as an aside the single biggest thing they could do to speed up delivery would be to change the policy so that you can only buy *one* instead of two iPads when you go into a retail store during the first months of availability. It would make the idea of standing in line for the grey market people less likely, twice as many folks in a given line would get an iPad, and it would make many more models available for online purchases.

  • jd

    Yes, the Regent Street flagship store in London offers 9pm reservations for pick up the next day but unless you reserve one nano second after 9pm, you can forget getting an iPad allocation. For the last 4 nights, I’ve been trying to reserve one (literally as the clock strikes 9pm), only to be greeted with the message that there are none available for pick up. When I telephoned both the Covent Street and Regent Street stores in London, I was told that online reservations “go within seconds” and to “keep trying”.

  • Zen Diesel

    I was thinking the same thing, it would have been nice if I one could have the ability to reserve an iPad 2. I ultimately broke down and ordered it online in fear that I didn’t want to waste time going to the Apple Store in the morning to the get the iPad I wanted “AT&T Black 64GB 3g” only to find out that they don’t have it.