“Not eight days after Apple’s new flagship store was unveiled, Stevie J.’s fantastical glass elevator began acting a bit wonky, first opening and shutting its doors, then finally sealing in its passengers on the upper level,” Ryan Block reports for Engadget. “Apple store employees worked their hardest to release the bunch, but eventually the NYPD had to be called; the elevator’s hydraulic system had to be drained, and the confined group was let out in the store’s bowels (i.e. lower level).”
Full article with a photo of group stuck in the elevator here.
More pictures directly from the source: http://ranex.blogspot.com/2006/05/stuck-at-apple.html
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Judge Bork” and “MPC Guy” for the heads up.]
According to Block’s report, for their trouble, the freed customers were given their freedom and nothing else after spending 45 minutes in Apple’s fishbowl. Bad form, Apple.
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LOL THIS IS EXACTLY THE KIND OF STUFF APPLE MAKES!!!!
IT LOOKS PRETTY BUT BREAKS WITHIN WEEKS!!!! JUST LIKE HALF OF MY FRIENDS WHO OWN iPODS!!!!
AND APPLE DIDNT EVEN COMPENSATE THEM FOR APPLES MISTAKES!!! JUST LIKE THEY DO WITH THEIR MERCHANDISE!!!!
ROTFLMAO!!!!!!
Ha, ha, ha what a bunch of losers wasting your time arguing over this crap.
GET A LIFE people!
You wanna ride this elevator? Are you feeling lucky, punk?
Hey, granny, don’t make me kick your Bill Gates sucking ass!
Lock you customers into an expensive elevator…Nuff said…
Credit to leodavinci for pointing out the obvious. Even if we are being cynical, Apple blew a great opportunity to demonstrate the caliber of their customer service. Instead, people get a negative impression.
It has nothing to do with entitlement and everything to do with service. Is it wrong to go the extra mile and do all sorts of unnecessary, but courteous things for customers to make their experience that much more enjoyable, particularly when they are visiting the FLAGSHIP store of a company, a company that gets media attention at the drop of a hat? Obviously not.
AppleCare Protection Plan for iLevator: $10,049
And they got free bottles of water. That’s beyond the standard operating procedures for an Apple Store.
I agree with MDM. Bad form Apple. The fact is, this isn’t Macy’s. It’s Apple and Apple is suppose to be about their customers more than the average company taking your $$.
Plus this is a flagship store and is suppose to be “special” creating the ultimate in shopping experience. With the worldwide press this store will continue to get for a while, it’s just really bad business to let this opportunity to put your money where your mouth is, go by. Apple blew it. They can spend outragious amounts on glass cubes, but blow the entire PR move by not spending $100 on a few free gift cards?
I’d be firing the on-duty manager for sure over this one.
Good thing nobody had to go poopy while standing in the elevator.
I should get a $100 gift card for having to read about it.
I guess Triumph the Insult Dog wasn’t trapped…
Starting next Monday, David Blaine is going to stay trapped inside the glass elevator for 365 days straight. He has declined any Apple/ITMS compensation.
John:
Apple neither designed nor fabricated the infamous 5th Avenue elevator. However, I will gladly chalk up this Apple “error” if you will provide articulate comment on the following hearty helping of glitches, blunders, bugs, and bungles currently permeating Vista:
http://chris.pirillo.com/2006/05/28/65-more-windows-vista-mistakes/
http://chris.pirillo.com/2006/05/24/windows-vista-feedback/
Oops, I neglected to mention the features originally promised as part of Longhorn, but now conspicuously and embarrassingly missing from Vista. Where’d they go, Johnny? Have you looked behind the couch?
http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/winvista_5308_05.asp
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/03/22/microsoft_vista_delayed/page2.html
http://arstechnica.com/journals/microsoft.ars/2005/8/5/887
It appears that Vista won’t be ready for prime time any time soon, Johnny boy, and it seems that most users really don’t expect much from Vista despite a decade of Microsoft’s ceaseless, if futile, efforts.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/03/27/windows_vista_reader_survey/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/12/12/windows_longhaul_longhorn_could/
Pog,
Great first post!
U blame consumers for being lazy and using an elevator and not the starirs? So at the first step why apple made an elevator there? To not to be used?!! Is it an “only in emergency use” Elevator? didn’t they spend a lot of money to build a fantastic elevatore to draw people attention? For what? Just watch and never use cos if u do and stuck there u would be an idiot fat lazy guy who doesn’t wanna walk!!
And when u make a new store and want people to come and make it alive so u need more good and positive advertisment than others and this was a very bad one. giving some gifts don’t kill a large company like apple and it would give a positive face to the whole incident.