New Service Lets Users Try Apple's New IPad For 30 Days Before Buying 150
zacharye writes "A new subscription service allows potential gadget owners to test out new devices like Apple's new iPad tablet before committing to a purchase. YBUY, which bills itself as a try-before-you-buy online subscription service, charges users a flat monthly fee of $24.95 for access to a wide range of consumer electronics as well as home and kitchen gadgets. Users can choose one device at a time from YBUY's catalog and trial the gadget for up to 30 days before returning it. Beginning in April, the company's inventory will also include Apple's new iPad."
Re:The first hit is free (Score:2, Insightful)
Except in that case most people will realize they don't have an use for one.
At least that's my experience of iPad users. Past the "it's so cool" period, they pretty much only use it in the toilet.
I don't think Apple will like this.
Re:This isn't news, this is an advertisement (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:At face value... (Score:4, Insightful)
What's wrong with that?
Re:If this catches on (Score:5, Insightful)
I dunno, it doesn't really affect the one compelling advantage of brick and mortar retail -- walk in, walk out with the product today.
People doing that (unless they change their mind and buy at the store) are a burden, not a benefit, to brick and mortar stores.
Plus, the main browsing advantage of brick and mortar stores isn't browsing a single chosen item before buying it, its side-by-side comparison of competing items.
Plus, compared to the ToS posted for YBUY, in-store browsing (even if you are unusually prone to impulse buying under those circumstances) involves less financial risk than YBUY's delivery liability and chargeback-recovery policies.
$25/30d - shipping + ??? = profit? (Score:5, Insightful)
I'm a bit baffled - $25, less packaging and shipping, on a $500 item (even at wholesale, say $400) means a payback period of no less than 24 months. That's probably longer than the expected lifecycle of a device like this. How many people would be interested in trialing a original iPad?
On the flip side, do you really buy enough stuff to justify $300/year? Especially when you can't get 2-3 similar items to play with side by side (Transformer, iPad, and Note; or three digital cameras like the Lumix TZ20, Sony HX30v, and the Canon SX 260HS).
And then there's the whole - pay retail for a returned and worn product part. I'm sure there's a marketing case for this, but clearly I'm not the demographic!
Re:The first hit is free (Score:4, Insightful)
Same as my wife. For a lot of people, a tablet can be the ideal device. If they spend most of their time in a web browser anyway, and don't do a whole lot of typing, the tablet is a shoe-in. A laptop is too much for them.
Re:At face value... (Score:5, Insightful)
I really do wish people around here would understand what fuck 'marketshare' actually means. Apple could sell 20% more iPads this year than last and still fall in marketshare. Why? Because their marketshare was 100% until their competitors came along.
If you want to experess doom and gloom, go by how much their sales of dropped, not marketshare. Derr.