Apple - sort out your SHITE ordering service

[csjaosna]

I'm still waiting for my new iMac to arrive in the UK even though the order was placed on the 10th of January; people who ordered it after me have already received theirs; people who go to PCWorld and MicroAnvika can get theirs before I will.

I had to place the order 3 times before it went through. The first time, I needed to make a slight change to the machine configuration: this was not possible, so the entire order had to be cancelled. The second time, Apple had an issue with the creditCard company, but didn't tell -me-; I only found out when I called them up to ask where my order-confirmation email was.

After using PCs all my teenage and adult life, I'm making the monumental move into MacLand. Whilst I'm very impressed with the new iMac and OS-X, I am not at all impressed with the AppleStoreUK and the general ordering system in place - why must the USA get priority on all orders, for instance?! Why does order-confirmation take so long? Why is my machine being shipped to Luxembourg, from Singapore, and then shipped (by different courier) to me in London?

When I called to enquire about delivery (did this today), I was told that I should expect further delays due to the Chinese New Year. Were Apple not aware of this public holiday when I placed the order? Were they blind to it the umpteen times I have asked for order-status updates? Have they only just realised that the factories they are building the machines at is staffed by people who just may want some time off at this time of year?!

I don't know what advantages ordering from the AppleStoreUK are supposed to be - they told me that they "are not Apple" and that they are "just a reseller" like PCWorld and MicroAnvika. If that is the case, then there is a large amount of deception going on at the AppleStoreUK website!

After complaining several times about this whole mess, I did get some emails from a helpful person at AppleStoreUK. They informed me that my order had "been prioritised"; they weren't able to tell me what that meant in reality; they were not able to say that the machine would arrive sooner; they didn't know if the machine would be built sooner...

So, this is my first experience with AppleStoreUK and probably my last!