Just some quick photos before I go to sleep.
And an iPad Launch won’t be an iPad Launch without scalpers, with a big bunch of them gathering at Starbucks after purchase to get paid by the big boss.
Oh and here’s my iPad.
P.S. I’m going to Singapore Polytechnic in the morning for the notebook sales. Anyone there tomorrow feel free to drop by the Apple booth (Sapura) to say hi. Not bringing my iPad though. :p
Who am I kidding really? I was never really eligible for any position within Apple Singapore. I graduated with a BA in Communications and New Media, hardly something Apple Singapore wants. I don’t have a computer science degree, I don’t know Unix inside out, I don’t have call center work experience, The only vague Apple-related work experience is from my annual sales gig selling Macs to tertiary freshmen in the various polytechnics and universities, and well, all the nonsense I made Apple Singapore do for us when I was still president at MacNUS.
So yeah, on paper, I was no good. In reality, I am probably no good too.
I am probably really only half-decently-good at piecing together information from my various sources and churning out articles/posts that detail sometimes-decently-accurate information that Apple has no intend of letting the world know. And as any hardcore Apple fan know, that’s a surefire way to make the recruiters trash bin my resume the minute they spot my name.
During the first few years after graduating from the now-infamous-pro-PRC-anti-Singaporean NUS, I did try my best to get onto the interviewee list, and every single time I fail to get past the first/second stage. I failed the interview for the japanese language call centre support job “because I asked about what the 1-year contract entails”, I failed the interview for call centre support because I told them I was only available in one month, I even got cancelled for part-time work for processing Back to School Promo documents for the Taiwan store last minute, among other rejections at Apple (To my credit, the non-Apple interviews I went for are all pretty successful). I can’t even remember how many times I was at the Ang Mo Kio Campus for interviews already.
With all these rejections taking a toll on my confidence, “Applying for a job at Apple Singapore” eventually became “every few months, check the Apple Jobs site, send in a few automatic applications with the 3-year-old resume, and wait for a call”. And of course the calls usually don’t come.
Apple, Apple Singapore at least, does not seem to like to hire its diehard fans, usually preferring to hire “people with results” away from other PC companies through word of mouth, in particular IBM. It totally does not matter that their internal staff have absolutely no experience nor knowledge of the Mac platform, so long they can perform their job scopes, like sales or marketing, very well (to say the truth, their performance was suspect, but whatever).
It was thus music to my ears when the then Head of Education Sales informally offered to find me a job in Apple Singapore in my graduating year. He eventually did not find me a job. And sort of disappeared after that year.
As anyone around me for the past 8 years will know, I am a fanatic Steve Jobs supporter before I am an Apple fan, so maybe in this world where Steve is no longer around, my stubborn insistence on adding Apple Inc to my resume can end. I suspect I will still send in the occasional application, but it will not be the same.
I give up.
You can follow MacRyu at @ryuworks on Twitter and @ryu on App.net.
Image Credits: RyuWorks on Flickr
Fact: the Apple Store (physical) for Singapore is almost ready.
For many years Japan was the only country in Asia with official Apple Stores, staffed by peeps wearing real Apple T shirts and geniuses who will solve all your Mac problems.Â
Then the China Apple Stores happened. And then so did the Hong Kong one.Â
In recent years, particularly around 2010, rumors have been rife that both Hong Kong and Singapore will be getting their own Apple Stores. The rumors kept everyone excited for a bit, but as time goes by and nothing happened, people forget.Â
Then in 2011, the Hong Kong Apple Store happened.Â
What happened to the Singapore Apple Store then, you wonder?
It is happening.Â
In recent months, I have heard whispers and chirpings from more than a few birdies that Apple’s business channels for the Apple Store in Singapore are under preparations, and that by now much have been done.Â
While the location of the Store remains a mystery, the expected period of its grand opening apparently isn’t. With some luck, Singapore will have our first Apple Store by end 2012.Â
Having an official Apple Store in Singapore is definitely exciting, but what does this mean for existing Apple resellers and consumers?
Fact: Apple do not really like their resellers much.
Resellers are a necessary evil to Apple, they ensure sales in locations and countries that Apple Retail cannot reach, and most of them, especially the APRs (Apple Premium Resellers), are even willing to have Apple dictate the design of their stores even if the APRs are the ones paying for the renovations. Selling through resellers, however, mean the Apple earns less profit compared to selling directly from its stores.Â
Thus for Apple Retail to enter Singapore, Apple will have to made conditions favorable for the official Apple Store to take away most of the retail profits from the current crop of Apple resellers in Singapore.Â
This usually mean putting more restrictions on what Apple resellers can or cannot do, for example the recent “no participation in IT bazaar shows” (nevertheless, nubox and Epicentre were still openly selling Macs at the recent IT Fair without being too showy about it), giving resellers even lesser stock of new products (they are already getting very little stock now, especially the non-APRs), and probably not allowing anymore new Apple resellers to happen (while trying to terminate the smaller resellers’ rights to resell).Â
Singapore has the largest number of Apple resellers in the region (so much so that people actually think Epicentre is the Apple Store), and for the Apple Store to take the lion’s share of the local market some of the resellers will have to go, it seems.Â
Nevertheless, I don’t expect Epicentre to be affected by this, since time and time again they have demonstrated that they have a lot of internal backing from Apple Singapore, for despite being the reseller to continuously break Apple’s very strict reseller rules with pleasure, they have rarely been punished. Seems that they are also heavily involved in Apple’s China operations.Â
Like the States though, the Apple booths in electronic chains like Harvey Norman and Challenger are apparently officially sanctioned by Apple, and are managed by a company (infinite) directly appointed by Apple. So these will definitely remain, and even thrive, in a future where there are Apple Stores in Singapore.Â
You might think all the above sound so terribly evil, but as a consumer, a future with a Singapore Apple Store is a much brighter future.Â
There are considerable benefits to be had from an official Apple Store as compared to normal resellers.Â
As far as I know, all Apple Stores in the world follow Apple’s 14-day return policy or purchases. This mean that should you be unhappy with your purchases, you can return your purchases for a full refund sans a small restocking fee.Â
If a product is refreshed with 14 days of your purchase, you can exchange your old product for the updated model. For example, if you bought an iPad 2 on the 13th and the iPad (3rd generation) is released in stores on the 16th, an exchange is totally possible in an official Apple Store.Â
Such exchanges and returns are just impossible at any Apple reseller.Â
Also, when Apple runs an official promotion like the annual Back To School promotion, you can enjoy the promotion directly at the official Apple Store, not so at the resellers.Â
When Apple announces a new product and keeps the current product while dropping its prices, like the $528 iPad 2 wifi for Singapore, an official Apple Store will update its prices immediately for existing stocks of iPad 2, while the last time I checked with certain resellers they were still selling the same model at $668 (Infinite-run booths and it’s Vivocity shop have the new prices already).Â
Other obvious benefits range from the superior experience shopping in an Apple Store, to much higher stock levels for new products, to availability of Apple Store-only products like the product (RED) iPods.Â
All in all, a very exciting future to look forward to. I can’t wait to go give my money to Apple at the Singapore Apple Store.Â
P.S. The second Hong Kong Apple Store is coming up soon too.Â
Edit on 14th Nov 2013: Chatter resurfaced recently. Apple Store Singapore is apparently being planned for Orchard Road, the area between Wheelock Place and Far East Shopping Centre/Hilton. Will update if or when I hear more.
You can follow MacRyu at @ryuworks on Twitter and @ryu on App.net.
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Wednesday night (or Thursday morning) is iPad 3 day, and here are my predictions;
1. No LTE
Sorry, but LTE is really just not feasible in anywhere besides the States right now. In fact, it really isn’t even that feasible within the States, where LTE coverage is really less than ideal.
2. Retina Display, 2X of the original iPad resolution
Given.
3. iPad 2 8GB, to accompany iPad 3 16GB, 32GB, 64GB.
Which means no 128GB. It’s really just part of Apple’s recent strategy, to continue selling old stuff for cheap. It’s really not new, Apple for years have continue to sell previous generation models through the “refurbished models” page on their site, and putting it out front and centre is just a way to sell even more of the old stock (though with the 8GB they probably have to modify the old stock).
4. Naming? iPad 3
No particular reason, I just like iPad 3 more than iPad 2S or iPad HD.
5. Apps to demo the iPad 3 on? Aperture for iPad
Dan Benjamin thinks it’s Photoshop Touch, but he really is mistaken. For the past don’t-know-how-many iPhone/iPad events, new Apple apps have always accompanied the release of the devices, and this one shouldn’t be any different. And it’s finally time for Aperture for the iPad, because iPhoto on the iPad will be really weird due to the presence of the Photos app.
6. Design? Almost exactly the same as iPad 2, slightly difference in thickness.
Given. Too many pieces of evidence lately.
7. Camera? 5MP
Why? Cause it’s cheap enough by now.
8. Accessories? “Works with Smart Cover!” New colors.
If the case design is largely the same, no reason why it won’t work with the current line of Smart Covers. The design of the Smart Cover is such that it will accommodate many future iPads so long the design of the iPad itself isn’t that big of a difference in terms of shape. New colors will just give everyone a reason to buy new Smart Covers, which is what Apple really wants.
9. OS version? iOS 5.1 with Siri
Seriously though, Siri is getting pretty slow these days, so it will only hurt if they put Siri on the iPad. But Apple always put its new software features and apps on every new device that they debut, so it’s highly possible.
10. Singapore Launch Date? 23rd March 2012, Friday
Seriously it’s a tie between the 23rd and the 30th, but I won’t be able to make it on the 30th. So I’m putting all hope on the 23rd! Peeps in US, Japan, Britain get theirs this coming Friday.