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Want a Mac under the Christmas tree this year? Better order now
Online shoppers placing orders for the new Retina iMac on Apple's digital store are seeing notifications of "unexpected delays" as we make our way closer to the biggest gift-giving day of the year. MacNN is reporting that delays of up to two weeks are pushing orders originally slated for November deliveries back into December, with no specific reason offered for the delays. So if you were planning on gifting a new Mac to a loved one this year -- or maybe even picking one up as a present for yourself -- you should probably fill that virtual shipping cart soon, or you'll risk some serious disappointment.
Twitter's 'Buy' button is finally ready for public testing
It's no secret that Twitter's been working on a way for you buy junk straight from tweets, and the company is finally ready to talk about it in public. You see, in the days and weeks to come, you might see "Buy" buttons embedded in tweets from Home Depot, Pharell and Burberry (no, really) as you poke around in Twitter's mobile app. Tapping that button will take you straight to you a checkout page where you can either punch in your credit card info or call forth the payment data you've already stored with Twitter. If everything goes the way Twitter probably wants it to, we may soon be looking at a service that's as much about commerce as it is about content. That'll be great for Twitter's bottom line, but the jury's still out on how regular folks'll take it -- some of them are already a little miffed about some of the timeline changes that are already barreling down the pipeline.
Can't I help you? Shoppers are shunning store assistants in favor of smartphones
Although it often feels like you're stealing, being able to walk into an store, pay for a product with your phone and leave without any employee interaction can be liberating. It's an experience that an increasing number of consumers are starting to enjoy too, as evidenced by a new report from Deloitte that suggests shoppers would rather pull out their smartphone or tablet inside a store than speak to an associate. More than half of the people surveyed admitted they prefer using a mobile device to compare prices, gather more information or check availability, while just under half of respondents said they'd rather use complete a mobile payment than head to a cash register. Even unmanned kiosks (think touch displays or tables full of tablets) outranked small talk with a retail employee.
Having trouble pre-ordering Reaper of Souls? You're not alone
If you're trying to pick up your own copy of Diablo 3's soon-to-be-released Reaper of Souls expansion from Blizzard, you may have run head-first into a "500: Internal Server Error" message. The big downside to this error -- beyond your inability to buy the expansion -- is that though you don't get anything, you may still see the charge pending on your credit card. According to Blizzard support, because the charge didn't successfully go through, it should vanish within a few days. However, it doesn't leave us inclined to, as the error suggests, try again later. Fortunately, Blizzard is on the case: We're experiencing difficulties with pre-orders for Reaper of Souls. These issues will be resolved ASAP. Thanks very much for your patience! - BlizzardCS (@BlizzardCS) March 21, 2014 Hopefully we'll see a resolution sooner rather than later -- with Reaper of Souls due out on the 25th, there's not much time left to buy for release-day gameplay. In the meantime, we're holding off on clicking "buy" until @BlizzardCS gives us the all clear.
The Summoner's Guidebook: The allure of new LoL champions
Picking new champions in League of Legends is akin to picking a role. There are a few major schools of thought: Either you pick a small number of characters and stand by them or you grab every new character that strikes your fancy. Of course, there's a middle road where you get a lot of characters but you still focus on getting new characters that add something to your roster. There's less of an opportunity cost with picking up a new character than there is with picking a new role. Learning a new champion takes some practice, but many of the things you learn while playing your new character are applicable to every character in the same role.
The Daily Grind: What have you purchased in-game lately?
I'm always fascinated with gamers' spending habits. Some of us have plenty of disposable income to splurge on frills while others of us have to watch what we buy very closely. MMOs are littered with ways to spend your money, from outfits to boosts to character slots to lockbox keys. I am still burning through my virtual wad in RIFT, having accumulated a great amount of credits from my previous subscriptions. I indulged in a guilty pleasure of picking up a swimsuit for Summerfest the other day because I just had to be a Cleric kicking butt in a tasteful two-piece beachwear. But I also resolved to save the rest of my credits for RIFT 3.0's new souls when they come out. Other than that, I haven't bought a lot in MMOs lately. What about you? What have you purchased in-game this past month or so? Was it worth it? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
The Daily Grind: Did you buy any MMOs on Steam this year?
You spent a bunch of money on Steam's summer sale. It's all right; you don't have to deny it. We did too. The real question isn't whether you spent the money; it's what you spent all that money on. EVE Online and The Secret World both made compelling cases for spending your money, offering steep discounts for anyone in the market for a new MMO. And who wouldn't be tempted? Well, maybe you wouldn't be. Maybe you're completely satisfied with your current lineup of MMOs and saved all of your money for one of the millions of other titles on sale this summer. So with the annual money drain finally out of the way, we have to ask you -- did you buy any MMOs on Steam this year? Or did you spend your rent money on a vast array of single-player titles instead? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Threadflip redesigns, seeing 20% of purchases made through mobile app
Threadflip is an app where users can buy, sell and discover various clothing and other fashion items, and it's just undergone a major redesign. The app was introduced about a year ago, and since then, Threadflip has seen about 20 percent of purchases made and 40 percent of items listed come directly from the mobile app, so it's a fairly big market for them. That follows the trends that we've seen with mobile shopping lately, with more and more people using their iPhones and iPads to shop, either buying items directly on the touchscreen, or using the mobile devices while out in a more traditional retail environment. Threadflip's new design includes both a new shopping experience and a new seller dashboard, so users can easily and quickly find what they want to buy (and then check out with those items), or put items up for sale. The app is available now, and to celebrate the redesign, Threadflip is offering 20 percent on purchases from the app until Sunday, June 2, when you enter "TFAPP" at checkout. Threadflip seems like an excellent example of the growth of mobile commerce, and odds are that we'll see more and more of these apps in the future.
Osom mashes up Craigslist and Instagram, lets you sell your beautiful things
Perhaps after wading through one too many bleach bypass photos of someone's scooter, a trio of Swedish developers thought an Instagram-like app would be an ideal way to sell such things. To wit, they developed Osom, an iPhone app that pays homage to the social shooter in concept as well as design by letting you create photos with a variety of filters, price them and put them up for sale. Other users can find your artwork by following you, filtering by geography, watching a global feed or seeing it on Facebook via a cross-posting option. To buy a photo, they'll need to contact you directly through the app, as there's no built-in payment option. According to TNW, the team hopes to keep images in the feed beautiful and upscale, though so far the selection isn't curated -- and we saw a fire extinguisher and other run-of-the-mill goods alongside vintage dresses, antiques and the like. Osom will eventually include "featured" and "Osom'd" ads to make money, so if you want to enjoy the unsullied version while it lasts, hit the source to grab it.
Guild Wars 2 brings trading post online, handles hacked accounts
It's a good day for Tyria's Wall Street and its many denizens, as ArenaNet has brought Guild Wars 2's trading post fully online. The trading post, which works as an advanced version of an auction house for the game's players, has only been sporadically available since launch. The defense and counter-attack against the legion of GW2 hackers continues, however. The devs report that "a Guild Wars-related fan site" was recently hacked for its account information, and say that the reset password feature for the game will remain disabled for the time being as to not allow hackers another avenue of attack. ArenaNet said that during the past 24 hours, the team has dealt with over 2,500 hacked accounts and over 2,800 login issues.
Dear Aunt TUAW: Which iPad should I buy?
Dear Aunt TUAW, I decided to sell my iPad 1 and pick up an iPad 2 or 3. not sure which one yet. I will see what the [next iPhone] launch brings. Also, in your opinion will the iPad 2 be supported longer than the iPad 1 was? Just trying to decide what to buy next. Your loving nephew, Blake Dear Blake, The move from iPad 1 to iPad 2 was revolutionary; from iPad 2 to "new iPad" more evolutionary. Auntie's pretty sure that some new tablet hotness will appear next Spring, but she's uncertain whether Uncle John is right about an upcoming miniPad this Autumn-- he's been sounding the drums loudly, when he isn't sneaking cookies from the pantry. It's hard to make buying decisions mid-year, when you're out of phase from the normal delivery time, but Auntie (as always) has an opinion. She recommends buying a new or refurb iPad 2. (The refurb models are $130 off, and give you 3G and GPS for the same price as new WiFi models.) iPad 2 models currently start at $399 and Auntie thinks they'll retain a good part of that value come this Spring, when you can do the eBay-mambo-trade, and swap up to the newer new iPad, i.e. what the marketplace will call the iPad 4. The "new iPad" a.k.a. iPad 3 (see what Auntie did there?) is a great device, and Auntie thinks it's dripping with tech hotness, but we're already almost 5 months into its life cycle. If you have the money, sure, go ahead and buy. The Retina display is brilliant -- or it is when you can see it through your drool tracks -- and who doesn't love Siri? But most of us are counting our pennies these days and Auntie thinks the 2 is currently a better buy. Will the iPad 2 be supported longer than the iPad 1? Given that the 3GS, which the iPad could beat into a jelly, is still supported, well, Auntie cannot say. Do not listen to the wind, and do not depend on Apple to support your babies longer than it must. Hugs, Auntie T.
PSA: Apple offering up to $320 if you trade in your iPad 2 in reuse and recycling program
Eyeing the iPad 3, but have yet to take the pre-order plunge? Per The Next Web, your patience is about to be rewarded as Apple's updated its Reuse and Recycling program, which means owners of iPad 2s in "good condition" can sling them back to their maker in exchange for an Apple Store gift card. How much the mothership will subsequently send back naturally varies on what iPad 2 you've got -- ranging anywhere from $205 for the base 16GB WiFi model, all the way to $320 for the most capacious 64GB WiFi + 3G variant. Or you could try your luck with similar programs such as eBay's Instant Sale or the one from Cupertino's tablet rival to the north. And would you look at that, we've even gone ahead and put links to all three just below.
Facebook burns a little cash, buys group messaging and digital book outfit
Facebook gone and done some serious damage to the company credit card, but thankfully, it's being used for more than replacing chimneys and repairing pool liners. Zuck's prized possession has just snapped up Push Pop Press and Beluga, with the former being best known for creating interactive digital books, most notably gadget junkie Al Gore's "Our Choice" book for iPad. Beluga on the other hand, gained lots of attention for its group messaging app built for iOS and Android. Push Pop Press co-founders (and former Apple engineers) Mike Matas and Kimon Tsinteris were quick to say that Facebook has no plans to publish digital books; they did confirm, however, that "the ideas and technology behind Push Pop Press will be integrated with Facebook, giving people even richer ways to share their stories." Mysterious. Could the Push Press Pop acquisition be the key to the fantasmical iPad app we've yearned for since the dawn of the new millennium? Beluga confirmed the future of Facebook mobile messaging when it said, "we're excited to build our vision for mobile group messaging as part of the Facebook team." Equally mysterious. Unfortunately, no concrete details are being made available, with each site's homepage simply confirming that It's Complicated.
Gold Capped: How to use trade chat to make gold
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Gold Capped, in which Basil "Euripides" Berntsen aims to show you how to make money on the auction house. Email Basil with your questions, comments, or hate mail! When was the last time you saw trade chat used to actually trade more than Chuck Norris jokes? Interestingly, it can actually be used for making gold! This might be a bit of a paradigm shift, so bear with me here. Trade chat is simultaneously one of the most overused and underused tools in our toolbox. Non-auctioneers sometimes use it almost exclusively because the addon-free auction house is intimidatingly badly designed. Gold-making pros sometimes get so wrapped up in their own business that we miss out potentially profitable chats. So how can you use trade chat to profit?
Gold Capped: Buy low, sell high
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Gold Capped, in which Basil "Euripides" Berntsen aims to show you how to make money on the auction house. Email Basil with your questions, comments, or hate mail! Everyone who gets into the auction house to make tons of gold immediately assumes that it's done by buying low and selling high. Seems simple enough, and it's one of those chestnuts that we've all heard Wall Street types talking about. Brokerage takes no trade skills, no addons, and it feels like making money from nothing. A lot of what I've written about for this column has focused on how to use trade skills for profit, but the truth is that brokerage really can be a profitable use of your time. It's not as easy as it sounds, but assuming you have a solid understanding of what you're doing, you can use it to good effect.
Gold Capped: TradeSkillMaster, the last trade skill and finances addon you'll ever need
Every week (since Feb. 14, 2010), WoW Insider brings you Gold Capped, in which Basil "Euripides" Berntsen aims to show you how to make money on the auction house. Email Basil with your questions, hate mail, or guild applications! edit: This post introduces the addon and concepts, but for a hands on setup guide, check out the basic and advanced posts. I have been playing around with a new addon, TradeSkillMaster. I've talked about a whole slew of other tools players can use to make money before, but none of them are anywhere near as awesome as TSM. Before I jump in, though, you should all probably know that this addon is still in beta. There are a few little bugs I've encountered (and reported), but the addon works very well in its current state. Please note that when you download the addon, you will need to download each module separately, as the entirety of the addon's functionality is accessed through the modules. They are linked in the description section of the TSM main page, but if you have a Curse Premium account, you can get them all at once. TSM is now my main tool for every single one of the markets I'm active in. That said, Sapu, the creator of the addon, needs help. He's done 95% of the code on the project so far, so if any of you are looking for an opportunity to work on an exciting and popular World of Warcraft addon project, I'd be just thrilled if it was this one. Down to business: what does TradeSkillMaster do, and why am I so excited that I wrote a post about it before it's done?
Windowshop from Amazon feels like a catalog on your iPad
Just in time for the holiday gift buying frenzy, online retail behemoth Amazon has taken the wraps off of a new way to help separate your money from your wallet. A free new iPad app, Windowshop, optimizes the Amazon shopping experience for the device. I had a chance to download and use the new app this morning, and I like the fact that it has been written from the ground up for the iPad. It only allows browsing in landscape orientation, which is fine with me, but might irritate some who prefer the more book-like portrait mode. Upon loading the app on your iPad, you'll immediately see columns of products arrayed on a side-scrolling screen. You can log into the app with your Amazon account, which then enables recommendations from the retailer and makes it way too easy to use one-click buying. Performing a search in the new app lists applicable products by store -- I did a search for "micro four-thirds cameras" which brought up results in Camera & Photo, Electronics, Books, Musical Instruments (???), and Sports & Outdoors. After scrolling the Camera & Photo store listing up and down with my finger, I found the camera I wanted to look at and tapped on it. A window containing photos of the camera, pricing information, details, reviews and more appeared in an animated swoop, and I could then tap and flick my way through information about the camera. Above and below the item are small arrows that point to similar items, like a 3D lens that works with the camera or an accessory battery pack. All in all, it's a very natural and smooth way to window shop for items that you may end up buying. Kudos to Amazon for developing an iPad shopping app that definitely shows a lot of design savvy. Check out a few screenshots below for an idea of how the app looks and works. [via TechCrunch] %Gallery-106013%
Insider Trader: Market alerts from The Undermine Journal
Insider Trader is a column about professions, written by Basil "Euripides" Berntsen, who also writes Gold Capped. This week, we're discussing something near and dear to every trade skill user's heart: prices -- specifically, how to get better prices. You remember The Undermine Journal, right? Here's what I wrote when I discovered the alpha. The creators have been busy managing the growth of the site, adding servers and realms, as well as periodically adding new functionality. It's in beta now, and they just added the most interesting feature: market alerts. You can now set up the site to email you every time stuff you're looking for hits a certain price. For example, if you are buying Saronite Ore to prospect so you can take advantage of the removal of the epic gem transmute cooldown removal in patch 4.0, you can go to your realm on The Undermine Journal and set it up so it will email you whenever the price goes down to your target.
Gold Capped: Breaking the glyph wall
Every week, Gold Capped brings you tips on how to make money on the auction house. This article from inscription specialist Steve Zamboni has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW.com. Almost all auction house tactics revolve around the undercut. It may be a single copper, a few silver or a few gold, or a freefall drop down to the price of materials. Regardless of the amount or the frequency, most undercuts share a common misconception: that you're controlling the market with your undercuts. You're not. Your competitor has the control. By undercutting, you've just let your competitor decide your price. You've let your competitor set a cap on your profits -- and more, you've agreed to accept even less with your undercut. The inscription market sees more than its fair share of this, sometimes on a large scale. The low deposits encourage large number of postings, followed by even larger numbers of cancellations and repostings. Prices fall as each new poster accepts and trumps the previous poster's prices, until the market falls to the cost of materials and the walls go up. The final wall signals a complete loss of market control. Once it's up, it no longer matters who built the wall. If it's your wall, you can't raise prices until the competition perched above you goes away. If it's not your wall, you can't raise prices on your auctions until someone breaks the wall. Stalemate, and out come the piña coladas.
Gold Capped: Making gold with alchemy
Want to get Gold Capped? This column shows you how. Join author Basil "Euripides" Berntsen, also of outdps.com, the Hunting Party podcast and the Call to Auction podcast. Alchemy is an awesome way to make money in WoW. As we've said before, some businesses are proactive, requiring you to invest time and money in order to make profits. Some are reactive, allowing you to use a cooldown to craft something that's in demand for smallish volume of sales at high profit. Alchemy is unique in the sense that it allows you to both! You can craft and sell potions, flasks and elixirs, and you can transmute an epic gem once a day and Titanium Bars without a cooldown since patch 3.3.
