iStore

Went in today to ask a question regarding if my damage to my macbook pro was covered by AppleCare. When I got to the store, the employee in the front was on an iPad watching football which is fully unprofessional. I then went up to him and asked for help regarding a repair and he seemed to have no knowledge about the issue, and was wrong when he went and asked his colleagues. Then he stated that he was ‘skeptical’ about the damage and I caused it myself, which I did not! He seemed like he was annoyed or bored with any question I asked and wanted me out of the store so he could get back to his football game. Was sent here by Apple because of the long reservation list and will not be back! Avoid at all costs! Would not trust the repair even though they are Apple Certified.

Came here to try and get my Macbook Pro fixed. I’m working on my dissertation and cannot afford to be without a computer. When I checked Apple for a genius appointment the first available date was a week later! I found this place through Apple since they are an Authorised Service Provider. The website also said no appointment necessary.
The design of this place feels almost like an Apple store (which made me pretty comfortable as I’ve always taken my Mac to Apple directly so I was a bit nervous going somewhere else). The guy helping me was really patient and tried everything he could. I only ended up waiting about 20 minutes before he said they couldn’t fix it because my computer is «vintage» i.e. the parts aren’t made any more and this store would not be able to order them. He was thoughtful enough to point me to another place in Soho that could fix it (Amsys, another Authorised provider which I have also reviewed).
Even though I did not get anything fixed here, I want to comment on the professional and courteous manner they used in dealing with my request. I would highly recommend this place to anyone with urgent Mac problems who can’t wait for the Apple store appointments.

Service was good, ordering was simple, I bought an Apple MacBook Pro from these guys. They kept me up to date via email on my order status. I did have to hang around for a bit to wait for the sales guy to finish with a customer so the laptop could be registered etc … but it gave me time to wonder around the shop to look at other gadgets — naughty! Nice friendly staff, have recommended them to other friends who wish to avoid the rush of the bigger Apple retailers in London. Parking for a scooter is easy, a small road round the corner, easy. The shop is clean and tidy, the equipment is well spaced out to play.

I bought my MacBook here and was pretty impressed with the service. I knew exactly what I wanted so didn’t need to ask many questions. The sales assistant mentioned a few upgrades that I could get for the memory and hard disk but he wasn’t pushy and I didn’t get either.
I did email them later to ask about upgrading the memory and didn’t get a reply.

I went to Albion Computers because I was desperate to get my Macbook Pro fixed faster than the Apple Store’s estimate of 5 – 6 weeks, and I chose Albion because they were a) relatively close to where I was, b) an official Apple repair centre, and most importantly, c) open on Saturday afternoon when I rang around. I was given an estimate of 10 – 14 working days for the repair, but I got a call three days later (not even three working days — had the call on Tuesday), saying it was ready to be picked up. They’d replaced the trackpad and fixed the problem. Very impressed at the speed. The staff were all friendly and happy to help and have a chat while conducting business too, so I’d definitely recommend it for any Apple repairs or purchases that you don’t want to battle your way through one of the flagship stores for.

I think the other review is a little unfair — this store isn’t bad and as a reseller it has a good selection of stock.
I did manage to acquire my iPod touch from here a week before it was officially released ;0)
Service is good and the staff do appear to be knowledgeable.
it’s a great place to pop into it you want a case or some headphones — any type of accessory really. And it means you don’t have to traipse into Regent Street and fight through the crowds.

This is a pretty crap apple store, with pretty simple staff. I took my macbook in to be repaired and it ended up taking considerably longer than it should have done. I think this is a running theme with apple stores — the computers sell themselves, so they don’t need to employ particularly competent staff.