From Duncan Davidson’s A Hidden Genius:
It’s the data that’s generated at the Genius bar that fascinates me. This data, in aggregate, can tell Apple a lot about what machines break, how they break, and after how long in a much more direct way than what would come out of a third party service center.
Remember when Apple introduced the Intel-based MacBook Pros and they changed the power connector from a plug to the new MagSafe adapter? I’m pretty sure I recall Steve saying on stage they made the change in response to seeing lots of broken laptops caused by people tripping over the cord.
I wonder how many other issues in Apple products get addressed, in part, because of the data gathered in Apple stores by Apple employees. Customer service insights like these are invaluable to making effective product decisions.
I tripped over someone’s power cord yesterday and their laptop didn’t even budge thanks to the MagSafe power adaptor. I’m sure there are countless stories like this. Genius.