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New Service Lets Users Try Apple's New IPad For 30 Days Before Buying
zacharye writes "A new subscription service allows potential gadget owners to test out new devices like Apple's new iPad tablet before committing to a purchase. YBUY, which bills itself as a try-before-you-buy online subscription service, charges users a flat monthly fee of $24.95 for access to a wide range of consumer electronics as well as home and kitchen gadgets. Users can choose one device at a time from YBUY's catalog and trial the gadget for up to 30 days before returning it. Beginning in April, the company's inventory will also include Apple's new iPad."
There is no article to discuss, it just goes to a quote of a giant press release. This is spam.
It sounds more like people will rent things for vacations and flights who have no interest in actually buying the things.
What's wrong with that?
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
From the Terms of Service:
6. Delivery Confirmation
Because many instances may occur at your delivery address that is beyond our control, you agree that any delivery confirmation provided by the carrier is deemed sufficient proof of delivery to the card holder, even without a signature.
So let's say that UPS claims to deliver it to you but takes no signature -- and the box promptly walks away. From the language above, it sounds like you have the responsibility to hassle with UPS for an insurance claim.
And on the Chargeback Policy in case you decide that it wasn't your fault that a device didn't exactly isn't on your doorstep when you get home:
7. Chargeback Policy
All references to a “chargeback” refer to a reversal of a credit/debit card charge placed on www.ybuy.com. There is no reason for a chargeback to ever be filed. If a credit is due, simply contact us and we will gladly issue it. Unnecessary chargebacks are theft and can be prosecuted. If you feel that your credit/debit card was used fraudulently on www.ybuy.com, please contact us for immediate resolution at support@ybuy.com.
YOU AGREE THAT YOU WILL NOT CHARGEBACK ANY AMOUNTS CHARGED TO YOUR CREDIT/DEBIT CARD ON THIS SITE. IF YOU CHARGEBACK A CREDIT/DEBIT CARD CHARGE FOR A PAYMENT INITIATED BY YOU, YOU AGREE THAT THIS SITE MAY RECOVER THE AMOUNT OF THE CHARGEBACK IN ADDITION TO $ BY ANY MEANS DEMED NECESSARY, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO RECHARGING YOUR CREDIT/DEBIT CARD OR HAVING THE AMOUNT RECOVERED BY A COLLECTION AGENCY.
Its the final nail in brick and mortar retails coffin. There will be no reasons to even visit the local shop to have a look at something you are going to order on New Egg or Amazon later. Retail at least could hope that might stop in to see the new IPad and leave with something else that just had to have on impulse, now habitual online shoppers will have no reason to set foot in a local store. The can just try out $ITEM in the own home.
Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
Apple Retail Stores have a 14-day, no restocking fee, no-questions-asked-as-long-as-it's-not-damaged return policy on iPads. (And Macs, and iPods, and purchased-outfit iPhones, and pretty much anything that's not software...)
Just buy one at an Apple Store, and return it if you don't like it.
(Posting AC because I'm a Genius.)
I'm a bit baffled - $25, less packaging and shipping, on a $500 item (even at wholesale, say $400) means a payback period of no less than 24 months. That's probably longer than the expected lifecycle of a device like this. How many people would be interested in trialing a original iPad?
On the flip side, do you really buy enough stuff to justify $300/year? Especially when you can't get 2-3 similar items to play with side by side (Transformer, iPad, and Note; or three digital cameras like the Lumix TZ20, Sony HX30v, and the Canon SX 260HS).
And then there's the whole - pay retail for a returned and worn product part. I'm sure there's a marketing case for this, but clearly I'm not the demographic!
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
In my country (as well as most of Europe that I'm aware of) you have the right to return what you buy online within 14 days without questions asked. By law. Some companies already extended this, knowing that people will either return it right away anyway or keep it anyway, so 30 days no-fee returns are pretty common already.
So... well, maybe a nifty idea but I fail to see the news.
Ohhh, slashvertising... never mind, silly me, living in the past when /. was about news and not ads.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
The last several times I sent something through UPS they verified the contents. They do this now because of all the people mailing packages of drugs.
Same as my wife. For a lot of people, a tablet can be the ideal device. If they spend most of their time in a web browser anyway, and don't do a whole lot of typing, the tablet is a shoe-in. A laptop is too much for them.
-Billco, Fnarg.com
I really do wish people around here would understand what fuck 'marketshare' actually means. Apple could sell 20% more iPads this year than last and still fall in marketshare. Why? Because their marketshare was 100% until their competitors came along.
If you want to experess doom and gloom, go by how much their sales of dropped, not marketshare. Derr.
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
I really do wish people around here would understand what fuck 'marketshare' actually means. Apple could sell 20% more iPads this year than last and still fall in marketshare. Why? Because their marketshare was 100% until their competitors came along.
If you want to experess doom and gloom, go by how much their sales of dropped, not marketshare. Derr.
Seems to me you need both figures to get the whole picture.
Let's say your sales go up a little but your marketshare drops drastically. It means you're doing a little better and your competitors are doing much better. It indicates you are no longer so competitive.
Short-term, it's just like you say -- no big deal, it's a fairly new market, etc. Long-term, if that doesn't change, it will prove to be unsustainable. That's the part that remains to be seen. It's easy to have good sales and good marketshare when there are no other players in the market. I'm much more interested in what happens when that environment changes.
It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education. - Einstein
Personally, I just check out Facebook while sitting.
That would certainly explain the vast majority of the content on Facebook...
>They spend money on quality materials where others do not. But it doesn't justify a 100% premium over their competitors.
Actually, that is pretty much the *only* thing that *does* justify such margins. In just about every other manufacturing industry, there's the cheap crap you can buy at a discount, and the high-quality, well-made stuff that has a much greater than >100% price premium. Toasters, Dining Room Tables, Cars... You name it, and paying for quality has always been profitable.
The only question that remains is whether you think Apple is providing the quality. Given your statement above, it is.