Hey gang. Well as any of you in the southeast already know, Apple opened yet another Apple Store in Atlanta, GA today. The turn out was great. Apple was giving away t-shirts to the first 1,000 customers but the hand out was when you
left the store rather than entered it. I got in at 10:10 (the store opened at 10:00) and I didn't leave until noon. Between the presentations, the chaos, and the awesome selection of accessories and software (including two rows of nothing but games) most of us were in there that long. When I got out at noon for a break I got one of the last shirts and there were STILL people in the line outside waiting to get in.
Among other things I saw several iMacs and G4s getting wheeled out to customers within 15 minutes of the store opening. I finally got to see the PowerBook 800 and DVI to ADC adaptor (bigger than I thought but not too big). I saw one gentleman purchase, at the same time, a PowerBook 800, 22" LCD, DVI to ADC adaptor, and an Airport Base Station. I should have followed him to his car
People from both of the Apple Specialist in the state were checking things out (that includes me) as well as several folks I know from the local Mac user group and Mac based dot coms in the city. There was even a guy from Adobe present to give a presentation on Photoshop 7.
Overall I was really impressed with the employees. They handled the chaos without a problem and were racking up sales quickly. However I'd assume that many people already knew what they wanted and were just waiting to get it when they visited the store today. The guys at the genius bar were exceptionally polite and I found out that the store hosts a fully functional AppleCare facility in the back. That's cool but I don't know if you'd want to bring your broken G4 tower or LCD monitor to the busiest mall in the state and carry it up a flight of stairs. I was a little disappointed with the iApp presentations. Overall they were fine and made for a good intro for people new to the iApps or Macs in general. I certainly wasn't expecting to learn anything new since I already use all of the iApps regularly at home and with work. However it was clear that the presenter wasn't very practiced on the programs. He knew what he was doing but some of the more complicated and yet cool features with iPod and iPhoto were difficult for him. The iPod especially had him reading from a stat sheet which I found annoying since I sell Apple products myself and I memorize product info and stats. Again, the presentation was good for newbies (which is what the store aims for) but Mac vets will probably spend the time better making a mental wish list with all the stuff on display.
The layout of the store is great for presentation and demo. Every possible use and/or configuration of Apple hardware and software is present. iBooks and PowerBooks have one section showing off AirPort, another section showing off iApps, and yet another section showing off the DVI to ADC adaptor. They even have older G3 iMacs on display which surprised me. No eMacs though
Many non-Apple products were on display such as digital cameras and camcorders that support OS X. There was even a display showing two MP3 players along with Apple's iPod. I honestly wonder whether that display was made to mock the other MP3 players or not. The best part is that with several AirPort base stations all of the machines are online. That and an area of 20-30 feet outside of the store has access to the store's open AirPort network. Right now I'm sitting across the walkway from the store with Pismos, iBooks, and TiBooks on every table within site of the store posting away on the Internet at faster speeds than my 56k dial up at home provides. Let me think: the mall has a roof and AC, food, access to Apple stuff, and free wireless Internet access going through a T1. Why am I going home again?
Anyway, if you're in the area and you haven't yet head out to the store this week and check it out. As for regular visits I imagine the Apple Store will die down in a little while. If you're in the mall you must at least visit the store. However, since the mall itself isn't the easiest in Atlanta to access and a lot of people live on the northwest or south part of the city I imagine people will return to their usual Apple providers. It may hurt CompUSA's Apple section but places like AIS Computers and RetroTech (you're Apple Specialist) and MicroComputer will likely keep their regular customer base. The Apple Store doesn't have anything an Apple reseller can't get and the prices and promotions will remain the same for everything.
I'm making an iMovie with footage I took from the opening of the store. I'll try to get a small copy up on my Mac.com account ASAP.
My last thought before I pack up my iBook and make the hour long drive home is this. Looking at my really cool t-shirt with the Apple logo and Lenox Square written on the front I think Apple should take a lesson from Hard Rock Cafe and sell Apple Store shirts at each location. I would hit the Apple Store in any city I visited long before Hard Rock Cafe to add to my collection.
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