There’s been no way to visit a Genius Bar for the better part of two months with Apple stores closed, but that could change in the coming weeks.
With no Apple stores open for several weeks, the world must have been a bit of a trying time for folks with tech support needs on the iPhone, iPad, Mac, or other Apple devices.
A face-to-face physical tech support bar was never going to be easy to replace with an online or phone-based counterpart, and while we suspect it would have helped some, there are many who would have preferred their tech needs sorted by the friendly person standing across them at Apple’s own tech support team.
Unfortunately, Apple stores were some of the first to close around the world, thanks to the coronavirus crisis, but as Australia looks to flatten the curve, it also could be one of the first places to see its stores reopen. The CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, told Bloomberg that Australia and Austria will be the next places Apple plans to reopen its retail stores within the space of one to two weeks.
Apple confirmed as much with Pickr, with more information in the coming days and a focus on supporting customers at the Genius Bar, as the company looked to alleviate some of the concerns its local customers may have had. The company said that it would include a social distancing protocol catering for a limited number of visitors in the store, as well as enhanced health and safety protocols, including two metre social distancing, significantly enhanced cleaning procedures, and temperature checks before entering.
It does mean that while Apple stores in Australia are on the verge of reopening soon, it won’t likely be business as usual. Instead of being the open-like-normal store where you can just walk in and play with devices such as the new iPhone SE or the recent Apple iPad Magic Keyboard, or even just hang on by and use Apple’s internet access, you may want turn to the online ordering system via its website or app, or expect a wait if you want to go inside, as there will likely be one for as long as social distancing needs are in place.
As for the stores, Apple confirmed that one of its largest stores in the country, Apple Sydney (below), will remain closed for upgrade, but the other 20 around the country should reopen when Apple says go.
