You could be forgiven for assuming that the best place to buy iPod and iPhone accessories is the Apple Store. After all, Apple spends an incredible amount of money on marketing to make sure you buy everything from their retail outlets. However, the Apple Store has not one but two Achilles’ heels. First of all, they don’t carry third party product accessories, it’s strictly a one trick pony; so if you’re looking for a new case for your iPod along with LG cell phone covers, you’ll have to look elsewhere. A spare charger for your Blackberry? Not very likely, don’t even think about shopping for Samsung cell phone covers at one of those fancy glass outlets or the web store. Apple’s other weakness is pricing. Because its customers are essentially captive (or at least many of them act like they are), the Apple Store rarely offers sale prices.
We recently compared offers and prices for a range of Apple product accessories at the Apple Store and another popular web retailer. First, we shopped for iPod Touch band cases, an ever-popular jogging accessory. At Apple, they start at $29.95, but an alternative retailer has a similar model on sale for under $24. We thought it might be interesting to pick a common accessory for the latest iPod Nano and settled on the Apple Docking Connector USB Cable, the part that iPod users seem to lose most often. The Apple Store currently lists it at $19, which seemed reasonable until we checked the other site and found that they offer Apple’s OEM cable for less than ten bucks. Finally, we looked at iPod Mini accessories, but it wasn’t a fair comparison because the Apple Store doesn’t have any. Ironic, right? And it goes without saying that shopping for anything else, like HTC replacement batteries or LG cell phone covers, will be a short and unsuccessful trip to the Apple Store.
One last thing to keep in mind: While other online retailers offer free shipping on orders over $40, Apple’s online store requires you to spend $50 or you’ll pay shipping costs.
The bottom line is that there are web retailers that offer accessories for a wide range of products, including but not limited to Apple’s popular iPhones, iPods, and MacBooks, along with products for multiple cell phone and smartphone manufacturers. Samsung mobile phone cases, Bluetooth headsets compatible with many phones, memory cards, screen protectors, laptop cases, LG mobile phone cases and Blackberry chargers, all in one place at competitive prices. They also carry the new iPhone 4 accessories including the special designs to rock your Apple iPhone 4. So don’t go overboard with Apple products because there are better options out there!