You want an Apple iPad, you better not pay by cash

Danny Tse

because Apple doesn't accept cash for its iPad....

Apple wants your money -- just not the paper kind as one Bay Area woman discovered recently while trying to buy an iPad.

Diane Campbell, who is disabled on a fixed income, saved up enough cash for an iPad, according to ABC7 consumer reporter Michael Finney. She was about to plunk down $600 greenbacks at the Palo Alto Apple store for the new tablet computer when she was reportedly told the store would not accept cash. Stunned, she walked away iPad-less and with a backpack full of cash.

In fact, Apple's iPad purchase policy states the company only takes two forms of plastic that Campbell doesn't have: credit or debit cards. In other words, dollars won't work, neither will gift cards:

"iPad purchases are limited to 2 per customer and must be purchased with a Credit Card or Debit Card only."

Apple's iPhone payment policies are similar:

"iPhone purchases are limited to five iPhones per customer and must be purchased with a Credit Card, Debit Card or Gift Card."

A store clerk reportedly told Campbell the rule is meant to prevent people from buying iPads and reselling them in foreign markets. But this CNN story on a Hong Kong trader shows how some have sidestepped a policy. Campbell just wants to be able to download guitar song instructions and assures the Apple chief her purchase is legit:

"Come on Mr. Jobs, give a sister a break, okay. I'm not going to go sell my iPad."

**UPDATE**: Many of you have been asking about cash being "legal tender" and whether Apple is breaking the law. As Finney points out, the U.S. Treasury Department states Apple has a right to refuse paper money:

There is, however, no Federal statute mandating that a private business, a person or an organization must accept currency or coins as for payment for goods and/or services. Private businesses are free to develop their own policies on whether or not to accept cash unless there is a State law which says otherwise.

Jstas

Glad I don't want an Apple iPad.

exalted512

maybe im missing something...what is the difference in buying in cash and selling it overseas vs buying it with a CC and selling it overseas?
-Cody

j allen

More apple shenanigans! Whee! How can you not except something that is 'legal tender for all debts, public and private'?

Oh well, I don't own any apple products, and I recently stopped using itunes for my media, so I'm (hopefully) safe from them

edbert

exalted512 wrote: »

maybe im missing something...what is the difference in buying in cash and selling it overseas vs buying it with a CC and selling it overseas?
-Cody

If you pay cash they don't have a way to track who purchased it originally if it ends up in a foreign country. If you use plastic, they have a name attached to the serial number of that iPad and therefore knows who is selling them illegally. Someone correct me if I am off base in my thinking.

Danny Tse

edbert wrote: »

If you use plastic, they have a name attached to the serial number of that iPad and therefore knows who is selling them illegally. Someone correct me if I am off base in my thinking.

Can Apple legally forbid you from selling an item you purchased?

Jstas

Honestly, aside from Apple's usually absurd license requirements that nobody ever reads, the only reason to not export something like an iPad out of the country is encryption standards. Those standards are protected so that the Digital Encryption Standard doesn't get exposed to the baddies where they can reverse engineer it and compromise the software algorithm behind sensitive U.S. communications.

However, most Macs are not approved for sensitive work. Some are but I can assure you that an iPad and an iPhone would never be able to pass muster. So any reason Apple has to not export is purely a copyright and patent protection motive. Apple doesn't want it's stuff making it to Asia where the Koreans and Chinese will reverse engineer it and copy it. Then you'll see the likes of Samsung and LG coming out with what LOOKS like an iPhone but is just different enough to stand up to a patent suit investigation.

I don't know what's to stop one of them from just ganking one and running off with it. Especially since development engineers conveniently leave them in bars but, whatever. It's just Jobs with his empire building and protecting.

Jstas

Danny Tse wrote: »

Can Apple legally forbid you from selling an item you purchased?

If they spell it out in the license agreement and you do whatever they view as accepting the agreement and then violate that agreement, it is legally binding and they can and probably will sue your pants off.

F1nut

Time to change their name to Rotten Apple. Pffft

cfrizz

Apple sucks!

nooshinjohn

Wanna tell Apple to piss up a rope?:eek:




yeah, there's an app for that.:D:D;):p

MacLeod

Just one more reason to hate Apple. $600?!?! Why not just get a laptop for $600 that can do 10 times more?!

Danny Tse

Jstas wrote: »

Apple doesn't want it's stuff making it to Asia where the Koreans and Chinese will reverse engineer it and copy it.

But Apple sells the iPad in Hong Kong and in China (technically one country).

And I'll bet they accept cash

madmax

What is the world coming too... eff apple.

polkatese

Have we missed the obvious that Apple store has no CASH registers? All transactions are being handled via handheld POS (Point of Sale) system. They literally has no procedures nor processes to handle cash. Therefore their sales associates have no means to deposit and process cash payment.

I am not defending Apple, but I am familiar with retail store operations. Now that I think about it, AT&T corporate stores are the same way.

reberly

Bring back the gold standard.

Face

Ron-P

Once my PC dies I'm going apple. My neighbors just got one, it's a hell-of-a sweet machine...and I do have a CC or debit card to purchase it with.

On3s&Z3r0s

Apple makes some good stuff, for sure. Too bad they're such fascists. I was considering an iPhone and felt myself getting sucked into the Apple "ecosystem" black hole until HTC came out with the Droid Incredible. After I get one of those I can stop worrying about becoming an Apple fanboy zombie for at least two years.

Knucklehead

Danny Tse wrote: »

Can Apple legally forbid you from selling an item you purchased?

No, I dont think they can, BUT, paying with plastic like mentioned gives them a way to track the iPad, once youve bought 2 and sold them or whatever your done...for good.

danger boy

rotten Apple

AsSiMiLaTeD

Once again, Apple can suck it...

shack

Like it or not...it is called Capitalism. Their technology, their product, their stores...and as long as they are not breaking any laws...have at it.

Just because someone doesn't like them or their methods, doesn't mean they are a bad company. Jobs deserves everything he has IMO...he built a VERY sucessful company that tends to have huge brand loyalty and makes a lot of money. Lots of techonlogy companies wish they could be like Apple right now.

Apple and MS are kind of like a basketball coach once stated...

He wanted to be hated by the coaches of the teams and the fans of his opponents. If they like you...it's because they are beating you.

comfortablycurt

That's stupid.

I'm glad I don't want an iPad...since I apparently wouldn't be "allowed" to buy one anyway.:rolleyes:

bruss

I take a android tablet when they arrive. Screw apple. Maybe their employees cant count change back

obieone

Steve Jobs= Satan spawn. George Lucas too. I'll never own an 'i' anything, or a 'droid' anything either.

shack

obieone wrote:

Steve Jobs= Satan spawn. George Lucas too. I'll never own an 'i' anything, or a 'droid' anything either.

Interesting - Two men I admire for their accomplishments.

bobman1235

polkatese wrote: »

Have we missed the obvious that Apple store has no CASH registers? All transactions are being handled via handheld POS (Point of Sale) system. They literally has no procedures nor processes to handle cash. Therefore their sales associates have no means to deposit and process cash payment.

I am not defending Apple, but I am familiar with retail store operations. Now that I think about it, AT&T corporate stores are the same way.

You can buy peripherals and whatnot with cash at Apple stores. They do have cash registers, they just don't use them for most transactions.


As for shack's argument that it's capitalism... it sure is, but the other side of that Capitalism coin is that if you piss people off with your policies, they boycott you, so... here it is

shack

bobman1235 wrote:

As for shack's argument that it's capitalism... it sure is, but the other side of that Capitalism coin is that if you piss people off with your policies, they boycott you, so... here it is

I doubt this will hurt Apples bottom line at all. PROBABLY 99.9% of the people purchasing an iPad will be using plastic anyway.

Jstas

shack wrote: »

I doubt this will hurt Apples bottom line at all. PROBABLY 99.9% of the people purchasing an iPad will be using plastic anyway.

Probably because they are in hock up to their ears and probably can't afford to be buying such trinkets anyway.

shack

Jstas wrote:

Probably because they are in hock up to their ears and probably can't afford to be buying such trinkets anyway.

No...because the majority of the users of tech gadgets are used to NOT using cash. Electronic banking, etc. but not cash or checks.