Filed under: iPod Family, Cult of Mac, Odds and ends
Flickr find: Someone forgot to restock the vending machine!
Somewhere in a San Francisco hotel, California, there's a vending machine stocked with snacks, beverages, and some stale iPod shuffles. Let's hope the consumables are refreshed more often than the iPods!
I wonder why we aren't seeing more of these? iPod vending machines, I mean. For a while there it looked like every airport, hotel and assorted lobby vending machine was going to be filled to the brim with iPods. I hardly ever see them myself, though.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Shack said 9:04PM on 10-10-2006
If you look at the full size photo you can see that these are actually just the iPod Shuffle Sport Case, not the iPod itself
http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=266434243&size=l
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Laurie said 9:10PM on 10-10-2006
Good point, Shack! My eyes are my weakest attribute so I didn't even really notice the orange border. Even so, those sport cases are stale too :)
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Brett said 9:11PM on 10-10-2006
I think the iPod vending machine never caught on because it's not something you can use immediately, like a soda or candy bar. You need to charge it with power and fill it with music, and you need to have your computer with you to do it. Doesn't seem like an impulse buy type of item, unless you forgot someone's birthday while you were on that trip. ;)
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shrimp said 9:26PM on 10-10-2006
The new Shuffles aren't shipping yet. They would probably have the old ones until they do.
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Jacqui Cheng said 9:55PM on 10-10-2006
I just saw one (iPod vending machine) the other day in a department store.
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Don Wilson said 9:28PM on 10-10-2006
There's a huge double-sided iPod machine in the mall near me, I'll take couple pictures and post them to the TUAW group when I have a chance.
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Alan Gyssler said 8:24PM on 10-11-2006
What I want to know is where you'd find a vending machine that stocks soda, water, candy, iPod accessories (and presumably iPods, too), and condoms (see upper right corner of photo). Now that's a variety of products.
(on the way through JC Penny) "Hold on, guys... I gotta get some Coke, snow caps, a video iPod and some latex contraceptives. I got a very busy night planned. Where's my credit card?!?"
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Kurt Vander Bogart said 9:41PM on 10-10-2006
Still, Japan is way ahead of the US as far as vending machine contents. You can buy eggs, vegetables, video games, noodles, used school girl panties, cell phone recharging, lobsters, DVD's, CD's, beer, whiskey, along with your usual soda, ice cream, candy, tea and sushi.
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Ink Master said 10:47PM on 10-10-2006
@ Kurt Vander Bogart - ...used school girl panties?! wtf?! take a picture; I dont believe :p
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matt said 11:11PM on 10-10-2006
last time i was in the atlanta airport i saw at least 2 ipod vending machines and that was in only one section of the airport.
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Damnage said 12:21AM on 10-11-2006
http://andy.zero1labs.com/tmp/Photo_100306_001.jpg
http://andy.zero1labs.com/tmp/Photo_100306_002.jpg
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Peter S said 11:28PM on 10-10-2006
@ Ink Master... its true, i saw one of those in tokyo's narita airport, sadly i din't have a pic lol
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Isaac Wexman said 12:14AM on 10-11-2006
I went into this exact hotel just a few weeks ago to use the bathroom inside of it....I was very suprised when I saw this machine and showed all my friends. I don't know if I would be willing to buy an ipod shuffle from a vending machine though...sounds a little risky to me
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erikcantu said 7:30AM on 10-11-2006
They probably aren't so popular because, well, where do you return it if you have a problem with it?
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earthdog said 8:22AM on 10-11-2006
I've been traveling a lot recently and there's at least one of these in every international terminal I've been in. Talk about an impulse buy for a long flight!
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Maple syrup in my blood said 9:21AM on 10-11-2006
Costco has bunches of the old ones, not for much of deal though, the 4gb black nano was only $30 cdn cheaper than a new one.
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hugacrv said 9:27AM on 10-11-2006
If you buy and iPod at an airport kiosk, how are you gonna get tunes onto it? If you have your laptop with you, why not just listen to the tunes from there? Plus, iirc, the iPods don't have much (if any) battery charge in them at purchase, so you'd also have to find a power outlet.
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Trent said 10:31AM on 10-11-2006
There's an iPod vending machine in a San Francisco Macy's. I was visiting, so I don't recall the specifics of which one, but it was cool to see. As of last week they had all new iPod minis.
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huxley said 1:02PM on 10-11-2006
I'd guess the marketers weren't thinking about people using the iPods themselves, but more likely buying them as last-minute gifts. The number of travelling business-people who are panic buying for their kids is frightening.
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Donald Burr said 3:36PM on 10-12-2006
Japanese panty vending machine:
http://www.borg-cube.com/pix/japan2004-pam/japan2004-pam-Pages/Image43.html
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