Edible Apple

Apple on Thursday will release a new Apple Store app that aims to streamline the purchase process by making it easier for customers to order devices online and quickly pick them up the next day without having to stand in line.

Here’s how it all works according to BGR which obtained info about the upcoming app from a trusted source.

A customer who places an online order for an in-stock item will be able to pick up that item from an Apple Retail store in just 12 minutes. The 12 minute figure is tabulated thusly: 3 minutes for the order to be processed. Then 2 minutes for Apple employees in the back to set aside these products. Next, add 7 minutes for employees to tie up any loose ends.

Around 12 minutes after purchasing, customers will be able to walk into the Apple Store, skip lines, skip registers, get their products, sign for them and leave. We’re told Apple is really excited about this, and it’s something customers have been seeking for a while.

But what about if a customer orders a product that isn’t in stock? In that case, the customer will be given what we imagine is an estimated pick up date. Once the ordered device arrives to a pre-determined Apple retail location, a push notification is sent to that user’s iOS device whereupon it will be ready for pick up in, you guessed it, 12 minutes.

And in an effort, we imagine, to encourage users to make use of the app as often as possible, BGR reports that customers who make orders via the app will be given priority over other customers waiting in line. The end result, Apple hopes, will be a quicker flow of foot traffic and also reduced shipping costs.

Lastly, the report claims that the app will include a self-checkout feature as well.

Here’s how it’s rumored to work:

After you find the item you want to buy, like an accessory, you launch the Apple Store app on your iOS device and there will be an option to buy a product in the store. You scan the product with the camera on your device in the app, click purchase, and it will charge whatever credit card is associated to your Apple ID. You then just walk out of the store. Yes, we have been told that Apple will not be checking purchases which seems hard to believe, but this self check-out option will launch Thursday worldwide at all Apple retail stores.

That seems hard to believe, but if it applies exclusively to accessory items like headphones and maybe even printers, then this sounds really cool.

via BGR