The Apple Online Store is currently down for customers in the United States with a placeholder saying that the company is “making updates” to its website. However, the reasons behind this are unclear at this point.
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The Apple Online Store is facing an unplanned outage of some sort this afternoon. As reported by several 9to5Mac team members, it’s currently not possible to navigate through the Accessories category and the homepage navigation appears to be broken.
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Although Apple has its own line of earphones and Beats accessories, the company used to offer third-party headphones in its stores — but this is about to change. A new Bloomberg report reveals that the company no longer sells rival earphones, headphones, or audio accessories, coincidentally ahead of the so-called AirPods Studio announcement.
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If you’re buying a product through Apple’s online store, you can pay for it with a regular credit or debit card, Apple Pay, and even PayPal. Starting today, users will also find a dedicated option to easily check out with Apple Card.
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Update: The promo is also now live in Brazil.
Apple today is launching its annual Back to School promotion on Macs and iPads in New Zealand and Australia. The promotion, which is localized to ‘Back to Uni’, is similar to the Back to School promo in the United States…
With Christmas just days away, your chance to get gifts in time is running out fast. While 9to5Mac has got you covered for all your gift guide needs, you’ll need to act fast for December 24th delivery.
Further, Apple’s deadline for the discounted $29 out-of-warranty battery replacements is also ending right after Christmas, meaning there’s a handful of important deadlines you should be aware of.
Apple considered but ultimately rejected Uber for the same-day delivery service it piloted in May and expanded earlier this month for its online store, reports the WSJ.
In recent months, Uber lost out on the opportunity to make deliveries in some cities for Apple Inc. and Starbucks Corp. , which discussed tie-ups with Uber but then made deals with startup courier service Postmates, according to people familiar with the discussions.
One possible explanation for the decision not to use Uber may be found in a comment by another online retailer, Gilt Groupe, which says it rejected Uber because the company “was unable to insure high-priced items.”
Apple’s same-day option offers delivery within four hours for a $19 courier fee, but only for certain items and within a very small number of zip codes.
Postmates appears to be the main or sole courier company being used for the service, but Apple’s offer does not extend to all areas covered by the delivery company. If you live within a Postmates area but Apple does not currently offer same-day delivery, it may be worth trying to order the product through the Postmates app.
Apple has begun charging for and preparing to ship the first orders of the 42MM Space Black stainless steel, Modern Buckle, Leather Loop, and international stainless steel Link Bracelet orders, according to reports from several readers. Standard Apple Watch with Link Bracelet orders started arriving in the United States yesterday…
Apple has started to charge the credit cards of customers who ordered the highest-end 1.3GHz version of the 12-inch MacBook, according to emails from 9to5Mac readers. The customized, built-to-order MacBook went on sale earlier this month with 3-4 week shipping times for even the earliest orders, and Apple originally promised a delivery timeframe of May 8th to May 15th. As we saw with Apple Watch credit card charges earlier this week, it seems plausible that Apple already charging customers for the 1.3 GHz MacBook could indicate that shipments of the new laptop will begin occurring sooner than originally expected. However, readers have yet to report any signs of UPS or FedEx tracking numbers, or their Apple Online Store status pages moving from “Processing” to “Preparing for Shipment.”
Update: Several readers reporting that their MacBooks are now preparing to ship, several weeks early:
Apple may be revamping its storefronts to promote the Apple Watch, but it won’t be encouraging you to buy one there. Retail head Angela Ahrendts has sent a memo to Apple Store staff asking them to suggest customers use the online store to order both the Apple Watch and 12-inch MacBook. The memo reportedly reflects the fact that store inventory of both products will be very limited when the MacBook goes on sale on Friday and the Apple Watch follows two weeks later.
Ahrendts’ two-paragraph memo aims to put a positive spin on the fact that many customers are likely to be disappointed when trying to purchase the new products, suggesting that pointing them to online purchase will “make their day” …
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A 99 cent app finally allows owners of Fitbit activity trackers to view their data in Apple’s Health app. Sync Solver for Fitbit provides a daily sync of ten different pieces of data to the Health app built into iOS 8 – a feature the company itself said it had no plans to introduce.
The first sync needs to be performed manually, by tapping a button in the app, after which it will sync data automatically every 24 hours …
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Apple has recently added the 2014 MacBook Air to the refurbished section of the Apple Online Store. Currently, the 1.4 GHz Intel Core i5 11-inch MacBook Air is available in two configurations priced at $769 and $929, with 128 GB and 256 GB SSD’s respectively. 13-inch Air’s have also been in the store at various times in the last couple of days, so should return once Apple replenishes their refurbished inventory. These reduced prices are equivalent to around 15% savings in comparison new models from Apple’s site. The products were added two days ago, and have been lapsing in and out of stock constantly, so — like much of Apple’s refurbished offerings — quantities are obviously limited.
The 2014 MacBook Air’s were originally released in April, featuring new Haswell processors. As usual, Apple’s refurbished offerings come with new 1-year warranties and are subject to Apple’s normal refurbishment processes.
Although the price savings are significant when compared to Apple’s current MSRP for the machines, we’ve tracked better prices for brand new models from Best Buy on several occasions, and even eBay Daily Deals.
Need a new MacBook Air now? You can pickup the 13-inch (MD760LL/B) model for $749.99 if you have access to a .edu email address. That’s $250 below retail.
