So I went to the Apple store in the Manchester Arndale Center for the first time.

Loaded with cash.
Plastic cash.

I had lots of plans.

Although the conversion to Mac OS X came with several problems, and certainly missed Windows (network) features, I had decided over the last days to refocus on video… and now wanted some decent equipment. The MacBook is fun, cool and easy to carry around… but lacks in power. So I was going to get a MBP. Updated or not.

And a 2.8Ghz iMac as well.

And a new phone. Funnily enough I broke the screen of my shitty LG Shine yesterday afternoon and now I needed a new phone too.
Only two models made it past my initial internet quest: the iPhone and the Samsung U900 Black.

But I needed more. Since I already have sold the Dell notebook, I wasn’t going to feel bad about buying some superfluous stuff for everything and decided I wanted some stuff.

• A black iNcase sleeve for both MB and MBP.
• As every music fan, I wanted more and better than the standard iPod (touch) earbuds and had dropped my eye on a pair of Sennheiser in-ear buds;
• Because we do (almost) everything at the computer, the set of matching iSkin keyboard protectors.
• The obvious MiniDVI to DVI-D converter
• Some cases and scratch protectors for both iPod Touch and iPhone;
• A certain book about Final Cut Pro;
• Last but not least Mac OS X 10.5 for the MB, which was configured with Tiger when it arrived.

All these items are available over the Apple store and since the Arndale Center store one of the less than 10 shops in the UK is, i expected them to have everything obviously. Even the iPhone.
I already had decided I couldn’t be bothered by offering the Carphone Warehouse or O2 the commission and would buy everything from Apple directly. In person. Physically.
Not online.

I made an error.

Contrarily to most switchers, when I arrived at the Apple Store and a salesmen jumped at me, even before I had enjoyed 30 seconds of time to browse, I did not as to speak to a Genius. No, I knew what I wanted and Google had helped me with all the other stuff last days.
Suffocated as I felt, I first asked for an iPod touch case. ‘We’re sold out, but here’s a store card and feel free to ring us to check if we have new ones in stock. We’ll gladly put one aside for you.’

Dumb ass, I thought. There are no official iPod touch cases yet, other than the Socks, but whatevah.

My next question was a harder one. I wanted a Toslink wire to connect any device, mainly the soon to be bought MBP with my kick ass stereo.
Why have a Mac and only enjoy sound over crappy built-in speakers?

Again I was confronted with the same answer: ‘We’re sold out.’
Luckily I had drunk MY kool-aid before I went to the Arndale Center and lassively I answered ‘No worries, I’ll order them online.’

I honestly was starting to doubt the so raved about Apple service. Especially when after walking and browsing some in this Ikea designed store puristic designed store, with way too many people in it, I found my Toslink cable and also the MiniDVI to DVI-D adapter I had asked for in between grumbling teeth.

At a totally different spot than where the interim employee with the Faster Than Shadow Apple Store Card Move^TM looked.

Of the 3 people who read here, luckily there’s no one who doesn’t know that I’m a bitch^TM, so I guess you all can imagine my appetite for more Apple stuff was gone. Even the iPhone appetite.

End result? I left the store with a Leopard install pack, a Toslink connector which fits every MP3 device, except the iPod touch, the iSkin protector I wanted, the iNcase sleeve in Khaki because obviously no black one was available, my wanted MiniDVI to DVI-D connector and iPhone socks.
The iPhone, iMac and MBP? Maybe I’ll get some next week when I’m in the Arndale Center again, but today the awesome customer service killed my mood to splash money.
Even if it were only an interim employer, just there because of the launch of the iPhone… the Apple Store is that big and has that many items that I knew where everything was within 20 minutes.