lucky bag
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Snowmen? No -- just people waiting in line at an Apple Store
Photo credit: @buckedplatypus That picture above? Well, you might think it's a bunch of snowmen in a line. That's pretty close to the truth, as it's a line of snow-covered people waiting in the dark in Sapporo, Japan early in the morning of January 1. Why would anyone sit in the cold and snow for hours? Well, there's a New Year's tradition in Japan of Fukubukuro, or "Lucky Bags". Merchants sell sealed bags of items at a substantial discount so that everyone walks away with a bargain, but Apple has sweetened the pot over the past three years by often putting much more expensive swag into random bags. The Lucky Bags sold this year for ¥36,000 or about US$340, with some really lucky buyers getting MacBooks or high-end iPads tossed into the mix.
Daily Update for January 2, 2014
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get some of the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the player at the top of the page. The Daily Update has been moved to a new podcast host in the past few days. Current listeners should delete the old podcast subscription and subscribe to the new feed in the iTunes Store here.
Apple's Lucky Bag sale kicks off in Japan
Last week TUAW covered the annual Japanese New Year's tradition of Fukubukuro or "Lucky Bag," in which merchants sell sealed bags of items at a substantial discount. Apple Stores are participating today (January 2, 2013) with bags selling for ¥33,000 (US$380). So what was in the bags this year? Former TUAW blogger Rick Martin writes for TechInAsia and The Japan Times, and he says that some of the more lucky participants actually came away from their favorite Apple Store with a lot more than $380 worth of goodies. Japanese blogger @Kazuend did some quick math and figured that his bag was worth about ¥95,000 ($1,100). He was able to get everything from a Lightning USB Camera Adapter ($33) to a 16 GB Wi-Fi iPad ($450) with several other accessories thrown in for good measure. That's @Kazuend's pile of goodness seen in the photo at the top of this page. Some of the luckiest Lucky Bags contained a MacBook Air. There's a summary of some of the swag on this Japanese site, with @Ryowxyz stating that the "jackpot was hit" with his Lucky Bag for 2013. He stayed in line for 16 hours at the Shinsaibashi store, and received the 45th Lucky Bag sold at the site.
"Lucky Bags" will return to Japan's Apple Stores
Fukubukuro, or "Mystery Bag," is a Japanese New Year's Day tradition during which merchants sell sealed bags of various items at a substantial discount, often as high as 50 percent. Apple Stores will participate once again on January 2, 2013. The bags will sell for US$390. In previous years, lucky customers have walked away with iPods, speakers, T-shirts and calendars. If you pick one up in January, please let us know. Customers have been known to camp out the night before, so get there early.
Apple lovers in Japan camp out for 'Lucky Bag' sale
Retailers in Japan have a New Year shopping tradition of selling "lucky bags," which contain an assortment of items whose value typically exceeds the price you pay for the bag. To the delight of many Apple fanboys here in Tokyo, "lucky bags" are also sold at the Apple store. But at 30,000 yen (about $370), they don't come cheap. Even at that price, demand is sky-high, and only the most dedicated of Apple fans can get them. Shoppers typically start lining up the day before the lucky bags go on sale, because every year at least a couple of people hit the jackpot and get a MacBook in their bag. From those who braved the cold overnight, here's a summary of what most are saying they found in their respective bags. I haven't seen any reports of MacBooks yet: Sennheiser earphones, smart remote with mic (iPod, iPhone, iPad) Mophie Juice Pack reserve iWires 3.5mm to 3.5mm stereo plug retractable cable iPod nano OR iPod touch Griffin Slap case for iPod nano Nike+ sensor iHome speaker system for iPhone/iPod red limited edition Apple T-shirt (view at end of video) This is all according to early reports from an assortment of shoppers. Check out Guttyo Blog's picture of the bag plus contents all spread out on a table (above).
