Posted Friday, May 18, 2007 at 6:29 a.m. by Chris Amico in The Dalian Life
Whenever people see my computer, the first response is a quiet gasp, then an amazed stare, then the question: "Is that an...Apple?"
Shocking, but yes, I'm a Mac guy. I bought my black MacBook last August, and I love it.
And I'm stoked. A licensed Apple retailer opened today in Dalian, between Friendship Square and Zhongshan Square on Zhongshan Lu.
The retail outlet is a direct seller, and prices are the same as Apple's online store, according to store staff. The walls yesterday were half-filled with iPods and accessories, while the rest of the interior was still being assembled. One iMac was up, but not running.
There's some question of who can afford to buy a Mac, which is still about a third more expensive than a PC. Incomes are rising everywhere, but it's still hard to find a Chinese person crossing over.
I get a lot of, "You can run Windows on that," too. Why would I do such a thing? Ick.
Dragon Star Apple StoreThe photo above was taken with my laptop's built in camera, because I forgot my real point-n-shoot at home. Cool, huh?5 Zhongshan Lu, Dalian
dl_applestore@126.com
0411-82656523
Comments:
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may 18, 2007 at 5:15 a.m. // Kevin S. said:
I hope the Dalian authorized retailer is a good one. I am almost always under-whelmed at Apple dealers in China.
may 18, 2007 at 5:50 a.m. // kelly said:
呵呵～Ｙ｀好象这是很简å•的一篇了　But... I still can not understand completely...hehe
may 18, 2007 at 7:10 a.m. // Valehru said:
There is an authorised store in Olympic square if my memory serves correctly. In between getting pirated DVD's and being hungover I remember being shocked when I saw it. Ahh the good ol' days of alcohol fueled DVD weekends...
may 18, 2007 at 11:11 a.m. // Rick said:
Valehru's right. I bought my girlfriend an ipod there.
that one brought tears to my eyes.
I was told, at that time, that it was the only Apple location in the city. I wouldn't call it a [HTML_REMOVED]i[HTML_REMOVED]store[HTML_REMOVED]/i[HTML_REMOVED] by any stretch, but it was at least an Apple Kiosk.
may 18, 2007 at 12:36 p.m. // Chris said:
Yeah, I've been to the one at Olympic, but it's not really a store. This place looks a bit more ambitious.
What it's still lacking, unfortunately, is repair service. Not that I've needed it yet (knocking on wood now) but it would be nice to be able to walk in and get the laptop fixed, if need be.
may 19, 2007 at 3:24 a.m. // Kim said:
Everyone round here knows that Dalian is famous for apples.
may 25, 2007 at 11:33 p.m. // lonniebhodge said:
Can I come visit?????
may 26, 2007 at 12:16 a.m. // Chris said:
Lonnie, I'm pretty sure there are Apple stores closer to GZ than Dalian, but if you're bound and determined to come all the way up here, the couch is open.
may 27, 2007 at 1:51 a.m. // Steven said:
last time i was at the DG Lifestyle store in the IFC Mall in HK (they're a very nice looking apple reseller) last month, the owner told me they would open in beijing soon. i helpfully suggested shanghai as a prime spot (obvious, i know, but...), and he said it was a matter of time (and money). i guess shanghai retail space is so scarily expensive these days...
jun 27, 2007 at 1:53 p.m. // Steve G said:
Thanks for posting this! I am leaving for Dalian in two weeks and was a bit worried that I'd have to traipse all the way to Beijing if I needed to buy stuff for my Mac.
jul 26, 2007 at 8:44 p.m. // max said:
do they fix macs there?
jun 9, 2008 at 2:17 a.m. // Sherry said:
Hey...what do you do in dalian? ... I study at the medical university.... im planning to buy an iphone..or maybe ipod nano latest...