I just read this post from Steve Jobs on Apple.com regarding the iPhone price drop this week. Good on Apple for offering to at least a small repayment for the major price drop after only two months of their iPhone being on the market. I know I probably sound like a fanboy, but Apple continues to impress me with their customer service and their customer centered model of business.
Why should you buy an Apple product? Because their customer service is not matched by enough tech companies and it will shock you [in a good way].
Compare this to, say, drobo… Similar price point, but when it dropped from $699 to $499 they not only refunded 100% of the difference, but they sent a cheque (okay, a check — As in cash refund) not just a 50% store credit for those suckered into buying more from the same company.
A partial refund in the form of a credit is a start, but companies can do better if they really want to make customers happy.
That being said, early adopters tend to pay more, and often get less in exchange (minor undocumented product changes often occur after the initial release as issues are discovered — Sometimes a minor indication will appear on the product somewhere, but this doesn’t always happen) — I tend to be an early adopter myself, and have gotten “burned” by this effect on and off.
Such is life, I don’t hold any ill-will towards Apple for dropping the price, I just find the reaction amusing — Apple’s PR couldn’t have done this better if they planned it (and I believe they did — This is Stockholm syndrome, marketing style)
I dunno about their service. My mom bought a 20GB ipod from their store. 9 months later, it died. They couldn’t fix it so they replaced it. 6 months later, that one died in the exact same way. All they did for her is offer her 10% off another ipod. That seemed totally wrong to me.
I really don’t think they should be giving any money back to people (even in a credit). If you buy something the first month it is out, expect to pay a premium. The xbox 360 has dropped significantly in price since it came out – where’s the outcry on that? I just think this goes against everything that happens in the industry.
Oh, let me add a couple more comments here.
Early adopters paying more aside, this is a little different — This example shows a fairly substantial price drop almost immediately after the initial hype is ending — This is different then most products (Like the xbox360 Robin brings up), where the price drops slowly over time.
Should Apple decide to make it a $100 cheque, they’d have my full support. Requiring another purchase to claim the rebate is why I consider this sleezy (at best)