Apple Revolutionizing Retail

conq writes "BusinessWeek has an interesting blog entry on Apple's 'iPod Express table', where they streamline the sale of iPods in their store. From the article: 'But the best part was that the Apple Geniuses behind the table had wireless gizmos for scanning credit cards, and Apple had worked out a totally wireless, paperless checkout process, called EasyPay. Once scanned, they advise you that the receipt will be in your inbox within an hour (since I'm already a registered Apple customer, they didn't even need to take my email or other information).'"

Comments

Security of CC number

[ibennetch]

So how secure is the encryption? I'm not sure I want my credit card number floating around in the clear, and while I imagine Apple did it right, the article mentions that he thinks this should be the future of all business transactions. I don't trust the local mom&pop bookstore to have their encryption together. On the other hand, if it's going to be some black-box solution that's actually set up right out of the box, it's kind of idiot proof, no?

The idea of having no reciept until I get home doesn't bother me, although what happens if they enter the email address wrong for new customers? A mis-type of the associate and all of a sudden you can't return your new toy if it doesn't work?

Re:Security of CC number

[BreadMan]

>> I'm not sure I want my credit card number floating around in the clear

Hand it to the waiter, and you have your card with all of the security numbers printed thereon in the clear. I'm not defending Apple's system, just pointing out that parties interested in getting your credit card information can do so with better fidelity and ease than attempting to break into a POS (point of sale) system.

That's the way to do it!!

[Aaron32]

It's great to see that someone is finally doing it right!

The key to success is to make it extremely easy for your customers to do business with you. Get 'em in, get what they need, and check 'em out. Happy customers = high profits.

I am very impatient when it comes to poor customer service. I have walked across the street to another electronics store when some stupid clerk said "Uh, only one guy has the key to the hard drive cabinet, and he's not around right now."

See ya... taking my business elsewhere then.

Not so new

[cvd6262]

Apple Geniuses behind the table had wireless gizmos for scanning credit cards

WOW! Re-vo-lu-tion! You mean like the ones waiters in Europe have been using for *ages*?

It's actually kind of nice because they do not take your credit card back to the register. They swipe it at your table and hand it back to you.

Re:Not so new

[droleary]

Except that I already have a PC that is faster than the iMac. Even if I didn't, it would be a lot cheaper to upgrade it (new MB, CPU and RAM), than buy an Apple product.

So what? The issue you raised is not one of tricking out an old PC, but buying a new computer from a system builder. It doesn't matter if that builder is Dell or Apple, you were the one who mistakenly thought an entry-level machine would suit the needs of a movie production studio (however amateur your home movies might be :-).

The question has to do with the software - the iMac comes with sw that has good reviews. I'm willing to pay extra for a turn key experience, but not $1000+ for conventional video editing.

Nothing about video editing is very conventional as of yet. I'd say maybe in 5 years, but by then HD will be increasingly common and that means even more resources will be required to manipulate it, so maybe 10 years out is a better target for a budget system that does what you want. Come on, are you seriously bitching about a machine preferring over 512MB RAM when editing video? How fast do you expect the Mac mini's HD to be doing all that swapping? It's like you're blaming Apple because you have absolutely no concept of the amount of data you want to push around.

With the exception of one person, they evidently figured I was a subhuman PC user from the start, so why waste time not getting the expected ritualistic acknowledgement of the self-annointed...

You deserved it. You clearly came in convinced in what you needed and refusing to accept that you could be wrong. Even in your telling of the story you come out looking like a prick, so I wager in the impartial version you were such a huge ass they couldn't wait to get out of the store. Don't blame Apple because you're intent on being a bad customer. They did the right thing and it is up to you to prove them wrong by buying a PC setup elsewhere that can do what you want for less money. Good luck with that.

Re:Hackable?

[DECS]

Yes, panic because WPA might be snooped, recorded and the encryption hammered off at an off site super computer by a l33t haxxor.

Or you can panic because, for the last 40 years, paper copies of your credit card transactions, with your signature, card number, exp date and purchase details, have always been available to the legions of underpaid service people who handle your retail/resturant/telephone purchases. Carbon copies were often left in the trash.

Seriously, if you think introducing wireless technology to the credit card transaction is opening things up for fraud, you are seriously shroomin. It's already fantastically easy to obtain your information.

But it is entertaining to hear such panic mongering from someone who has undoubtedly made telephone credit card purchases, and we all know how secure the POTS network is.