Loading ...A growing number of potential iPhone owners seem to be asking "where are all the iPhones?" as AT&T stores are apparently putting their demo models away. Multiple reports of stores with information booths but no attached handsets have been emerging, while some shoppers have actively been dissuaded from picking an iPhone by AT&T staff.
Some have theorised that the commission and margin AT&T make on each iPhone sold - it's already leaked that the carrier pays Apple up to $415 over the two year contract, including $150 to $200 per handset alone - is leading salespeople to promote alternative, more profitable models. One customer reported being strongly pushed toward the Blackberry alternative:
"What was a little disconcerting is that they were trashing the iPhone and Apple as putting out a bad product and suggested that I buy the new Blackberry Curve. I just smiled, walked out and across the mall and bought one at the Apple Store" 'DM'
An increasing number of stores are - whether for reasons of security or otherwise - moving their iPhone demo models away from public use and only producing them on request. Some AT&T reps even claim that customers must buy an iPhone before they can see it.
If you're passing an AT&T store, have a look to see if there are iPhones on display. We'd love to hear your feedback about the availability of demo models and the attitude AT&T staff around the country have toward the handset.
[via iLounge]
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I was at an AT&T store yesterday in suburban Cleveland. The iPhone was displayed prominently, the sales people were very enthusiastic about it. I asked about how it sold versus other smart phones. They said as soon as people tried it for a minute or two, it became the clear choice. They are selling high %s of iPhones versus the other “smart phones”. At least two were on the display. This AT&T store was clearly excited to be selling the phone. I wonder if this report is coming from street.com, Jim Cramer and his cronies, trying to put out FUD to keep the price low so they can buy more. They seem to like market manipulation.
I just purchased another iPhone for my mother in Cleveland as well. I had the same experience as kent. The staff pushed the iPhone as expected. It is diconcering to hear that AT&T may possible be downselling the one device that may save the company and possible make it the best cellphone carrier in the coming years.
TheStreet.com and Jim Cramer are not one to partake in market manipulation. TheStreet.com provides breaking news, around the clock markets coverage and personal finance news. They are a great site and Jim Cramer is a great educator.
I can understand sales clerks pushing higher-commission items, but don’t think the ATT & T corporate offices, when they hear, will let their staff shun the iPhone.
ATT paid a lot to obtain the iPhone for contracts, especially high-value smartphone customers churn from their competitors. With ATT’s reputation for customer service, they also cannot afford a public relations “black eye”…nor the resentment of many potential future customers.
Not to mention that ATT just could not be stupid enough to give Apple, after a successful launch, a “material breach of contract” reason to dump ATT and unlock the iPhone for other carriers. Could they?
My AT&T store likewise had no iPhones out. Both of the demo units had been taken by weak moraled members of our society. (The manager is an aquaintance and he told me.) They were not allowed to get one of the first phones as they would reduce the supply for the customers. The shipments to their store front from Apple apparently were from four to ten a day and they were all moving well. (Eight gigs moved much faster than the fours.) The manager and two sales people were excited about the iPhone. A techie sales guy was still a “pro-Blackberry” when he was talking to a customer whom I overheard while I was waiting for AT&T’s remarkably slow terminals to complete the tranaction (Sunday afternoon: 57 minutes to process the sale).
One would assume that after a few program expansions and improving the mail management (spam filters and mass junk deletions) the iPhone will eliminate an electronic item or two from our pockets. I am going to try to go total iPhone next week.
While I agree that the debut leaves an open road ahead, they really did a great job at getting where it is useful and functional. It causes envy and curiosity when I pull it out. I might read the manual and see if it does something that wasn’t intuitive.
I was trying to convince my dad, who was looking for a new phone, to get an iPhone, so he went to an AT&T store and they worked very hard to discourage him from the iPhone. He ended up walking out with a trek. This upset me primarily because I wanted to play with his iPhone, so I just ended up getting one myself and I LOVE it. I thought it was pretty lame though that the all they could say at the at&t store was how much better all their other phones were…I’m typing this message on my iPhone in landscape mode which is MUCH faster than I was ever able to type on my treo…
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