<p>Right now, if our 2-year iPhone contract is up, could we go to, say, a Verizon Wireless store to upgrade an iPhone 5 to iPhone 6 or 6 Plus on the spot, or do we need to order it and wait till it becomes available?</p>
<p>If available, how long will likely be the wait at the store? What are the pros and cons of going to an Apple Store instead? We do need to buy the Apple Care. (It seems it is called Apple Care+ now, isn’t it?)</p>
<p>Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>This site seems to be useful:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.istocknow.com/”>http://www.istocknow.com/</a></p>
<p>After some clicking here and there on the above site using my old iPhone, I am still not sure whether I could walk into a Verizon retail store and walk out with a new iPhone 6 in an hour or two. But it appears the supply is not tight as I see a lot of “green” marks.</p>
<p>Our Verizon store said it had to be shipped, they didn’t have them on site (about a week ago). I ended up up calling Verizon from home and having it shipped, it took a few days.</p>
<p>Went to Verizon and got grandma a 6 on 12/22. This was obviously during the Christmas rush and it took about an hour and a half. All they had left were the ones with the big storage capability (64) so it cost $100 more than we were planning. But they had us psychologically over a barrel because by that time we just wanted to be done with the process. Just got back from Apple (7 pm on 26th) with S1 where he purchased a 6 and it took about 15 minutes. </p>
<p>Took my son about 10 days of constant calling to find a store with a 6 in stock when he was able to go pick it up (after work). </p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>If we give up our old iPhone 5 to them, will they take it as a “trade-in” (like trading in an old car and buying a new car)?</p>
<p>We only have a few days to get this done if it is possible to get it done within this short period. If not, our S needs to do it at his school. He is totally capable of doing this all by himself (except that the money would come from the bank of mom and dad :)) It is just this parent’s wish to give him this “post-Christmas” gift.</p>
<p>We are in the south bay area. We could literally drive to Apple’s headquarter (there is actually a quite small Apple Store there) in, say, 15 minutes, if it would help speed up the process (I am sure it would not help.)</p>
<p>You would get it faster if you were to order it through Apple. With Apple they would show you which Apple store has it in stock for you to pick up, otherwise you could order it online and get it within a week. When I ordered it through ATT, it took over 3 weeks.</p>
<p>Thanks. Maybe we should check with Apple Store first.</p>
<p>Son went to Apple store today and was told if he ordered one online he would get it between one and twenty four hours. He ordered one while at the store and by the time he was home he was contacted to pick it up. The Verizon store had told him it would be a few days. </p>
<p>mcat2 - try to order online, instead of calling or going to each Apple store.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>Let me see if I could get his attention tonight, because the time is tight.</p>
<p>A long time ago, when we ordered a Mac mini (I think it was our first Mac with OS X, instead of the older, occasionally crashed/lock-up System 7.x) online, it was shipped from the other side of the globe, and then it was stuck at some customs here in US. It was a big turnoff. I guess the option of picking up at a local Apple Store changes everything.</p>
<p>Totally not relevant babbling here: I once bought a used Mac LC-II in order to get DS “excited” about HyperCard with a longer term secret agenda of introducing him the scripting on a computer. I guess I became too ambitious after I had scored something on LCSI’s MicroWorlds/Logo. I failed miserably but I learned the lesson: Whatever I introduce to this family for “edutainment” purpose has to be age appropriate.</p>
<p>My husband ordered a 6plus through Apple when it first became available; he had to wait three weeks for it.</p>
<p>Three weeks? Ouch! It was then (when it’s first available) but it is now. Maybe the situation has been improved. Knock! Knock!</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>I looked up Apple’s web site last night. It is promising because it indicates that the availability for pickup at every Apple Store in my area is within a day if we do not care about the color (DS usually does not - he is as “practical” as I am in this area.)</p>
<p>I actually told my S and my wife to go ahead and order it without me in front of the computer with them, before I went to bed last night. But if my guess is right, they would still wait till I am “around” to actually place the order. This is a job I just have some difficulty to delegate to another member in this famiy. (I should be around but I will definitely not the person who actually places the order - It is as if my wife would be the only person who is capable of entering the information like credit card number or address or Apple ID correctly. It is a somewhat funny family dynamics at work here: a lot of “co-dependences” between family members. Neither good nor bad, just somewhat strange. I would imagine that if I can not be in this role of making the decision, like I happen to pass away before my wife does, she will MAKE our S to take this decision making role - hopefully the future DIL would not mind.)</p>
<p>I went to the Apple store near me on Christmas Eve walked out with an iPhone 6 in my daughter’s preferred color and size in 10 mins or so. They were out of golds, but she never would have selected that color anyway.</p>
<p>Went to Verizon today, as its upgrade time for DS…this is an XMAS gift. Right now if you do the new program The Edge, your bill is the same each month on the family plan we have…plus same data. You can get a new phone after 18 months. The $30 upgrade fee is waived and you get for free… A case up to $35, a car charger and one other thing…he chose a portable charger. The entire freebies would have cost $100. The edge plan is sort of similar. You are paying for the phone over 2years, rather than the service plan. It seemed like a great deal to us.</p>
<p>Thanks again.</p>
<p>It seems the supply is not as tight as before.</p>
<p>DS’s iPhone 5 would shut down by itself automatically while the battery is still quite full. He had it replaced last year but it seems it still has the priblem. Since the contract has been expired, it may not be a bad idea to upgrade it instead of keeping trying another iPhone 5.</p>
<p>At an Apple Store now and find out there is a waiting line of about a dozen people who want to buy an iPhone. According to the guy in red shirt, they have both iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in stock. If it were for me, I would go for a 6 Plus (easier for my eyes to browse the CC web site. LOL.)</p>
<p>Our S is busy shopping his shoes now with his mom. Getting an iPhone seems to be of a lower priority to him today. This is mainly because he has not backed up his data yet. So it is unlikely he will get an iPhone today. Also we are not sure whether he wants a 6 or a 6 Plus.</p>
<p>Somehow my wife just suggested that we get it from a Verizon store we went to last time. She thinks there is no waiting line there (but I am not so sure. There is even some chance they do not have iPhone in stock.) Why does a woman like to complicate things?! Just wait in line and get it done in half an hour!</p>
<p>I may need to rest on a chair near the Apple Store for a while while they are shopping for the shoes. I hope they will eventually decide to get something at least and bring it home Today. I really hate to have another trip to this unpleasant crowded mall again.</p>
<p>We bought iPhone 6 at an Apple Store today. DS prefers 6 rather than 6 Plus due to its smaller physical size, so we chose iPhone 6.</p>
<p>We needed to wait in line for 25 - 30 minutes. The “red shirt” insists that we enter our Verizon account’s pin number instead of our account’s password (we originally remembered the password only), otherwise some of the phone upgrade process would not get through. It took us a while to guess it correctly. I think some stupid software is used by either Apple or Verizon, but I do not want to know what it is.</p>
<p>It is now up to DS (not me) to set it up. However, I may still need to help remember the passphrase for accessing the WIFI on our home network because he would not know it.</p>
<p>DS has restored the backup on his shiny iPhone 6. It is funny that he said the phone is exactly the same as his old phone now (really?!) It is even funnier that, right after he had the iPhone 6 in his hand and we were walking out of the store in the mall, I heard: “Dad, now we have bought the phone, are YOU happy now?” Have I spoiled him? :)</p>
<p>I do not think he will use Apple Pay, a NFC (near-field communications) technology. I even do not know whether he enabled and used the biometric fingerprint spanner on the “home” button. (Is there really an option that allows the user to NOT use that biometric fingerprint scanner? Is there any iPhone 6 user who chooses to not use the biometric fingerprint scanner?)</p>
<p>A few of our experiences:</p>
<p>We “sold” our old iPhone 5 back to Apple for $150.</p>
<p>The data on the old phone was wiped out before we handed it to Apple and then they put it into a plastic bag.</p>
<p>We did go to a Verizon Wireless store first because my wife insisted we go there against my advice. We even needed to wait there for 15 minutes and then we learned that they do not have any iPhone 6 in stock - in other words, they are “bullied” by Apple. (They do have a few iPhone 6 Plus in stock but that is not DS wants. If the phone were for me, I would take iPhone 6 as well because its battery lasts longer.)</p>
<p>Next project? DS wanted to reinstall the OS on his Macbook Pro over the remaining holiday days. I looked around and found a two-year-old 300 GB hard disk lying around. I reformat/repartition it and then handed it to him. It is up to him to decide when/if/what he wants to do with his computer. He said taking care of that could take longer. (It seems his school puts a lot of “stuff” on his computer in order to secure the access to some sensitive data - it is not just the usual antivirus, firewall, etc., software for the general users only. I have zero idea what they have done with the computer. But I do not need to know.)</p>
<p>He said he wants to do this (at least give it a try) because his computer becomes sluggish recently, after 4(?) years of usage. I think it might take too much of his time and even wonder whether it is worth his efforts. (After all, a 4-yo computer is considered as an old computer these days. Honestly, I think he should get a new one with the SSD drive instead of the mechanical hard disk.)</p>