Wont accept cash for Iphone in states

kevthecelt

Hi guys, my friend is over in the states and i gave her cash to buy me an iphone from the apple store, however they only accept credit cards apparently :mad: and she doesnt have one, has anybody had trouble with this? Any work arounds?

SeanEMS

They should accept cash since it's legal tender.

decsramble

SeanEMS wrote: »

They should accept cash since it's legal tender.

Might be some police requirement when buying a mobile phone? Proof of identity so a phone can be tracked?

SeanEMS

decsramble wrote: »

Might be some police requirement when buying a mobile phone? Proof of identity so a phone can be tracked?

I'm not sure since I never bought one.

cooperguy

You've just saved alot of money dont worry about it.

aidan_walsh

Its a policy Apple have put in place so they can guarantee fair distribution of iPhones to customers. When they started selling them first there were restrictions put on the number of iPhones sold at any one time to stop people buying a load of them and selling them off on eBay. Credit card tracking is the easiest way to ensure that people aren't moving from store to store to get around the limits.

Tom Dunne

Are you sure of this?

Because when I was in the Apple store in San Francisco last week, they were asking if you were purchasing by credit card (they did not ask what you were buying, I could have been buying a headset). If you were paying with credit card, there were guys wandering around with mobile credit card machines, so you could jump the queue.

If you were paying with cash, you had to queue up and go to the cash register.

Of course, I didn't get to the cash register, so I don't know if they would have refused me there if I was paying with cash for the iPhone.

Sounds unusual.

cdebru

kevthecelt wrote: »

Hi guys, my friend is over in the states and i gave her cash to buy me an iphone from the apple store, however they only accept credit cards apparently :mad: and she doesnt have one, has anybody had trouble with this? Any work arounds?

Go to an AT&T store they take cash there

chrislad

I was there (Apple Store) in November and they refused to let me get one for a friend with cash. I got one on my CC but didn't have enough left on it to get another one.

Not helpful, but related....

link removed

Pete4779

aidan_walsh wrote: »

Its a policy Apple have put in place so they can guarantee fair distribution of iPhones to customers. When they started selling them first there were restrictions put on the number of iPhones sold at any one time to stop people buying a load of them and selling them off on eBay. Credit card tracking is the easiest way to ensure that people aren't moving from store to store to get around the limits.

I think they allow a maximum of two per customer. I read elsewhere that you can pay cash but you must pay e.g., $1 on the purchase by credit card and the rest cash. There's plenty on the net about this for the OP.

The weird thing about the policy is that
a) cash is still (I think!) legal tender
b) credit card information should only be used (by regulations in the US and elsewhere) to complete a transaction and not to be used for customer tracking. Apple clearly want to keep this information for customer tracking.

kevthecelt

Well she was refused in the new york store, shes in san fran now so fingers crossed she'll get it there, but i doubt it! So bloody annoying

aidan_walsh

kevthecelt wrote: »

Well she was refused in the new york store, shes in san fran now so fingers crossed she'll get it there, but i doubt it! So bloody annoying

Was this in an Apple Retail Store, or an AT&T shop?

bluemachaveli

Apple stores will ONLY take cc.
I belive (im open to correction) than AT&T stores will take cash but you have to activate it in store!

futureisbright

I was in the cranefield centre in newry a few weeks back and went into the o2 uk store there. CC was the only payment acceptable there. Assistant said it was to have a cc on file for itunes. Anyway, he kept his phone and I held onto my cash

byte

futureisbright wrote: »

I was in the cranefield centre in newry a few weeks back and went into the o2 uk store there. CC was the only payment acceptable there. Assistant said it was to have a cc on file for itunes. Anyway, he kept his phone and I held onto my cash

Jaysus, that sounds well dodgy.

jahalpin

futureisbright wrote: »

I was in the cranefield centre in newry a few weeks back and went into the o2 uk store there. CC was the only payment acceptable there. Assistant said it was to have a cc on file for itunes. Anyway, he kept his phone and I held onto my cash

The iPhone is only avaliable on O2 UK billpay. I wouldn't blame them for only taking cards as people could just buy the phone and then bring it home and uklock it. They have to pay Apple a percentage of the 18-month contract that must be signed.

Gryzor

bluemachavel wrote: »

Apple stores will ONLY take cc.
I belive (im open to correction) than AT&T stores will take cash but you have to activate it in store!

yeah, i was over there last week, not a chance would AT&T sell to me without a contract, got it in the apple store with a cc

cdebru

Gryzor wrote: »

yeah, i was over there last week, not a chance would AT&T sell to me without a contract, got it in the apple store with a cc

I bought a few of them in different AT&T store only once did they ask about a contract and I told them it was a gift and that the person already had an AT&T contract. No problems.

Also in Apple store I saw people who argued buying iphones with cash once they asked for a supervisor. I also saw an Asian guy buying 5 iphones on the one credit card in an apple store once he spoke to a supervisor.

Headshot

by the way what are the prices of a apple iphone in the states

Gryzor

{(-_-)}HeadShoT** wrote: »

by the way what are the prices of a apple iphone in the states

linkage

those prices exclude sales tax of 8 or 9%

BuddhaJoe

Deleted User wrote: »

Not helpful, but related....

link removed

Awesome video but that website is really nsfw.

cgarvey

Walking around with that sort of cash (in this day in age, etc.) is a bit crazy!

Our man in Havana

Can the iphone be purchased without a contract in the US?

Gryzor

apple store...

Headshot

lads how would customs work

im worried about buying a iphone off ebay and getting stung by customs

higster

{(-_-)}HeadShoT** wrote: »

lads how would customs work

im worried about buying a iphone off ebay and getting stung by customs

Brother walked through with 4 in his hand luggage...extremly low risk will be caught out unless they have another reason they might stop you...they ain't too worried about iPhones, bigger fish to fry...

BTW got them in different Apple or AT&T stores, said he was buying as present for yank cousin, no bother handed over the counter and paid with visa

ironclaw

HI, just to confirm, you do need a Credit Card in the Apple Store in NY. They are very adameant. Some dodgy stores will sell them on the streets but some are the fake ones.

Customs do care, but its going to get very hard to know since the iPhone has been released here, a European Model from a US Model. In fact, its nigh impossible except for IMEI numbers.

Gryzor

ironclaw wrote: »

Some dodgy stores will sell them on the streets but some are the fake ones.

yeah, i saw a couple of those shops, reminded me of the dodgy electronics stores you'd see in lanzarote or any resort...

ironclaw wrote: »

Customs do care, but its going to get very hard to know since the iPhone has been released here, a European Model from a US Model. In fact, its nigh impossible except for IMEI numbers.

if customs cared, i thnk they'd at least have a presence in the airports for incoming flights from the US. I flew back into shannon a couple of weeks ago, not one customs official on duty, or at least if there was, they were off playing cards somewhere....they don't give a ****e methinks