When Apple opened its first retail stores in Tysons, Virginia, and Glendale, California, back in 2021, the goal was to let people touch the tech and connect with it in a way that glossy print ads never could.
While your local Apple Store may still be a bustling place on the regular, the retail world has changed a lot over the past twenty-four years.
Online shopping dominates, and most of us have giddily traded the instant gratification of immediately leaving a store with product in hand for the one-click convenience of cashing out your virtual shopping cart in your PJs, only for your shiny new iPhone or AirPods to show up on your doorstep a few days later.
But what if there was a third option? One with the benefits of both?
What if you could buy an iPhone, AirPods, or a new set of Apple AirTags in your PJs, step outside, and have them rain down from the sky into your eager arms within the hour?
You could call it the most literal version of AirDrop to date.
And, in parts of the U.S., you can now call it a reality — thanks to Amazon.
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Your new iPhone has been cleared for landing
If you've ever ordered an Apple product online, you're probably well aware of the usual routine: confirmation email, obsessive tracking, and the anxiety loop of peering out of the window every five minutes while your parcel is "out for delivery" — lest you be plundered by porch pirates.
However, in a handful of U.S. cities, some Apple products are skipping the store, skipping the delivery truck, and skipping the porch entirely.
Instead, they're arriving by air.
Skipping the Apple Store for Amazon is already something of a surreal experience. It's a bit like finding your new-age vegan nutritionist slipping Big Macs into bags behind the counter at McDonald's.
However, that experience is set to get all the more unique following the FAA's approval for Amazon to deliver several new categories of products by drone, including iPhones, AirPods, and AirTags — joining more than 60,000 other eligible products ready to arrive by air.
According to Amazon, the entire delivery process takes just 60 minutes or less, with customers able to select the drone delivery option through the Amazon Shopping app.
At which point, one of Amazon's MK30 drones will secure your package, take flight, and head towards your preferred delivery spot, which could be your driveway or yard. Once at the location, Amazon's drone drops to a height of 13 feet, scanning for any obstacles (including cars or pets), before safely dropping your (cushioned) parcel for collection.
What's next
At present, Amazon's drone delivery service is only available for a select catalog of items and in the following areas:
- College Station, Texas
- West Valley area of Phoenix, Arizona
However, Amazon is testing the program in other areas and looks to scale its drone delivery service to more states and cities across the U.S. over the coming months and years.
Given the MK30 drone's 5 lbs weight limit, we may not be too far off from a day when your next MacBook Air doesn't only earn its moniker from its lightweight build, but also its method of delivery.
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