Best Buy's attempts to get into the iMac game were laughable-- or they would have been, if they hadn't been so terribly sad. The Sears rollout is off to a bumpy start, with some units on display with no demo software, no marketing materials, and a price tag $100 higher than even the Apple Store price. (The official launch date was pushed forward, so we have high hopes of a vast improvement very soon.) Even CompUSA's Apple store-within-a-store started out as a total nightmare, though it's gotten way better over time-- but problems remain. Generally speaking, the retail market has been extremely tough for Apple, since it lacks control over the presentation, demonstration, and sales of its own computers. The iMac, the PowerBook, the new G3-- these are works of art that should be celebrated and exalted, not just left on a shelf in a state of disrepair next to one of those startlingly ugly Compaq units.

So what's the solution? Don't ask us. While there are plenty of regional and local resellers that know how to treat Macs with the respect they deserve, on a national level Apple's always going to have to rely on the likes of Sears and CompUSA. The only chance we can see for a uniform and positive Mac-buying retail experience on a national scale is for Apple to open their own stores, and really, what's the likelihood of that happening? We'd always just dismissed that whole notion as a beautiful pipe dream-- a nice thing to fantasize about while picking through the war zone of the local CompUSA.

But now The Register claims that "speculation is mounting" that Apple is planning to open a chain of retail locations across the country. Of course, the phrase "speculation is mounting" is generally synonymous with the phrase "there's no actual basis in fact for this rumor, but we're going to spread it anyway," but it is interesting to note that Gateway seems to pull in pretty good margins with its stores, which offer a showcase for their systems which customers can order. Could the same model work for Apple? All we know is, the idea of being able to visit an Apple retail store thrills us to no end.-- but we're keeping it filed in the "Pipe Dreams" folder right now.