No cash, no checks…and now no gift cards? Well, maybe not. We just finished talking to two Apple stores about their stance on using gift cards for iPhone purchases and the results were mixed. As we reported last week, Apple stores are no longer accepting cash for iPhone purchases and have instituted a two-iPhone-per-person limit -- all in an effort to discourage unauthorized resellers, according to Apple representative Natalie Kerris.
"We are limiting iPhone sales to two per customer to help ensure there are enough iPhones for people who are shopping for themselves or buying a gift," Kerris told Epicenter. "And we do require a debit or credit card for payment to discourage unauthorized resellers."
That policy also excludes gift cards as well, according to Kerris, as Apple considers them to be in the same category as cash.
Yet store policy seems to vary based on where you call. The Burlingame, Calif. store representative we spoke to Monday morning mirrored Kerris' response, saying that "official" store policy is now that gift cards will not be accepted. However, he also said that a manager could possibly permit certain exceptions and let potential buyers use a gift card if it is worth less than the price of the phone.
So here's the deal: If you have a gift card with less than $399, then it appears you at least have a chance at several stores around the Bay Area. That definitely seems to be the case at the San Francisco store, where a representative confirmed that as long as we used a credit card to make up the difference in price, they would accept gift cards.
I tried to see what would happen if, say, a customer had a gift card worth more than the purchase price of an iPhone but agreed to put a small amount (like $1) on his or her credit card. Apparently, that won't work.
UPDATE: This story was updated at 1:15 p.m. (PST) with comments from Apple.
[Via Engadget]
