Back in January, we noted that office supply chain Staples appeared to gearing up to begin selling Apple products in its U.S. stores for the first time. Staples employees confirmed the announcement several weeks later and late last month the company began selling Apple accessories in its U.S. online store.
Apple accessories have already been making their way to some brick-and-mortar Staples stores, with our sources indicating that at least some locations will also be selling a broader range of products, including Macs, iPads, and iPhones.
One source has now shared screenshots of training materials for Staples sales associates, revealing training modules addressing not only the Apple TV currently being offered Staples but also Mac notebooks, iPhones, and iPads. It is unclear if Mac desktops are not going to be carried by Staples or if perhaps those offerings will be limited to certain locations.
Staples' curriculum description for iPhone 5 training reads:
At the end of this curriculum, associates will be able to describe key features of the Apple iPhone 5, and suggest attachments that compliment the iPhone 5.
Notably, all of the training modules addressing Apple products carry completion due dates of March 26 or 27, suggesting that the rollout of those products to Staples stores is likely to occur very soon after.
Staples operates over 1,500 retail stores in the United States, marking a significant expansion of Apple's distribution chain. The new outlet also offers an appealing channel for businesses that may already have billing accounts and other existing relationships with Staples for their office supply needs.
Wednesday February 26, 2025 6:32 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In an all-caps post on Truth Social today, U.S. President Donald Trump said Apple should fully end its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.
Tim Cook meeting with President Trump in 2017
"APPLE SHOULD GET RID OF DEI RULES, NOT JUST MAKE ADJUSTMENTS TO THEM," he wrote.
Trump's post comes one day after Apple held its annual shareholders meeting, during which a majority of...
Wednesday February 26, 2025 7:15 am PST by Joe Rossignol
In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 18.4 will be released in April.
From the Apple News+ Food announcement:Coming with iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 in April, Apple News+ subscribers will have access to Apple News+ Food, a new section that will feature tens of thousands of recipes — as well as stories about restaurants, healthy eating, kitchen essentials, and more — from the...
The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is expected to launch later this year, arriving two years after the previous model with a series of improvements.
While no noticeable design changes are expected for the third generation since the company tends to stick with the same Apple Watch design through three generations before changing it, there are a series of internal upgrades on the way.
By the time the ...
Tuesday February 25, 2025 2:58 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple is making significant headway on its long-rumored foldable iPhone, with a new report suggesting the company has achieved a major breakthrough by effectively eliminating the screen crease that plagues current foldable devices.
According to Korean publication ETNews, Apple is finalizing its component suppliers for the foldable iPhone, with the selection process expected to be completed...
Tuesday February 25, 2025 1:18 pm PST by Juli Clover
Multiple iPhone owners today noticed a pronunciation processing issue that causes the word "Trump" to momentarily show up when using dictation to send a message with the word "racist."
In some cases, when speaking the word racist through the iPhone's built-in dictation feature, the iPhone briefly interprets the spoken word as "Trump" and "Trump" text shows up in the Messages app before being ...
Monday February 24, 2025 9:14 am PST by Joe Rossignol
According to a post on X today from a leaker known as Kosutami, Apple plans to launch AirPods Pro 3 in May or June this year.
The leaker also claimed that an AirTag 2 will launch around the same time.
Kosutami is best known as a collector of prototype Apple hardware, but they have occasionally shared accurate information about Apple's future product plans. For example, they accurately...
Monday February 24, 2025 6:11 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to launch a second-generation AirTag in May or June this year, according to a post today from a leaker known as Kosutami.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously reported that a new AirTag would be released in mid-2025. May or June would align with that timeframe.
Below, we recap three new features rumored for the AirTag 2:
With a second-generation Ultra Wideband chip, the...
Sunday February 23, 2025 2:23 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
The first beta of iOS 18.4 is now available, and it includes a small but useful change for CarPlay.
As we noted in our list of iOS 18.4 features, CarPlay now shows a third row of icons, up from two rows previously. However, this change is only visible in vehicles with a larger center display. For example, a MacRumors Forums member noticed the change in a Toyota Tundra, which can be equipped...
Shopping at Staples is like shopping at FYE for your entertainment.
Over priced and lack of selection.
I always assumed fye stood for "eff you everybody" in reference to changing corporate branding to evade following through on the Wall Lifetime Music Guarantee.
----------
Haven't been to a Staples this year, but last time I went I saw some iPad clones on display.
They had huge X-braces over them to prevent theft, going right across the screen.
I can't imagine Apple letting their products be displayed like that by Staples or anyone else.
Okay, that's actually worse than the motion sensing nuisance alarm that put me off my curiosity to try a Microsoft Surface at Staples.
----------
Staples product training is an absolute joke. I speak from experience.
They're a very rigid and inflexible conservative corporate entity. I had an interview for a job at a Staples once. The interviewing employee couldn't make eye contact. How professional and service like. They also told me I'd have to cut my hair. Pony tails on males goes against their corporate wage slave uniform. A few weeks later I heard similar stories about other conservative traits that continually shoot themselves in the foot in terms of customer experience and employment. It's like the corporate culture is one of an inability to think critically; certainly not creatively.
