Very cool article about Steve Jobs/Apple and XEROX. Expands on part of the story from the movie “Pirates of Silicon Valley”
Holy moly! This is going to be a great fall for Apple. New iPhone, new iOS, and iCloud. I might need to wear a diaper the day this all releases…
FEDEX SmartPost & UPS Basic
I usually don’t rant & rave negatively but if it affects me enough, I’m sure to let it out.
The first up is… FEDEX SmartPost & UPS Basic services.
I can’t count the number of times in the last year that I ordered a package and it was delivered using this service. You place an order, you get a tracking number, then you watch and wait only to find out the Postal Service will deliver it. If you’re like me you can anticipate your deliveries based on the tracking information. Not with this service… With this service, the parcel is shipped through a carrier and winds up at a post office for final delivery. So just when you expect to get those new shiny shoes, that eBay bargain, or like me today, some on sale vitamins from GNC, I had to wait another day or two…
My first experience with this was when my iPhone 4 case with from one end of the state to another bypassing me in the middle. You get all excited as you expect a shipment to come the next day only to be given the “Package transferred to post office” notification. This first experience got so screwed up, I called Apple to issue a replacement because it was so late. My replacement beat the original getting to my door!
I’ve had several deliveries come me using FEDEX SmartPost who started this type of partnership service. I never really cared for FEDEX based on several of my past experiences but when I noticed yesterday that UPS started this service too, I felt agitated. And this is by no means a slam on the USPS. I hear they don’t like it locally either. Search around for those services and you’ll find I’m not the only one sharing…
Yes, we still get our packages but most of us are paying a substantial fee for shipping and handling with our purchases. When I purchase something online, I want it as quickly as possible within the frame of how much I pay for shipping. From my understanding, this is sheerly a cost reduction service. But it seems the disadvantages are pushed to the consumer/recipient. Read about the services and disadvantages in this article on ParcelIndustry.com. I can’t imagine what the claim process would be like for a lost or damaged package with two parties involved…
I think if I’m paying the costs, then I have a right to know the exact method of delivery. Other companies should take a lesson from Amazon or Zappos, two huge companies with great reputations for customer service and shipping. I’ve never had a problem with them and I shop with them because of it.
Ok, I’m done talking…
Apple’s iCloud Launches In Beta, New Pricing and App Info Revealed
Late Monday afternoon, Apple flipped the switch on its iCloud.com domain name, revealing a few key bits of information that was previously unknown.
For starters, the pricing is fully listed for the first time. Under the iCloud storage locker plan, the first 5 GB will be free, after which upgrades can be bought: 10 more GB ($20 per year), 20 more GB ($40 per year), and 50 more GB ($100 per year).
As originally outlined in the iCloud announcement earlier this summer, those storage tiers don’t apply to any content purchased within iTunes. All that content is added to the iCloud for free.
Another tidbit confirmed is the fact that there will be iCloud specific apps. According to the site, there will be new Web apps for email, calendar contacts and other functions.
The site is meant for iOS and MAC Developer Program members, so they can start up- dating their apps (or create new ones) with iCloud ready features, primarily for synching content between the cloud and multiple Apple made devices. However, Apple put the site live with no corresponding release, or even mention on its developer website. Apple enthusiast blog 9to5mac.com first noticed the addition.
The full functionally of the iCloud service won’t be available until later this year when iOS 5 is available to all Apple devices.
—Antony Bruno, Denver (for Billboard Bulletins)
Really loving Safari’s new Reading List Feature. I always find stuff I want to bookmark to read later. This is a better temporary way of doing that. Two thumbs up, Apple.
DHL SHIPPING = FAIL
I love how my free iPhone 4 case from Apple has taken many weeks to process and just shipped this week. Not only that, DHL, the parcel carrier says it takes 9 days to get it from Memphis to Nashville! Apparently my iPhone case wanted to go to Atlanta first. Who knows where it might want to go next….D.C.? Chicago? Topeka flipping Kansas!?!?
Well it better fix the connectivity…
