iPhone XS, Apple Watch preorder system at Apple stores back after outage [u]

After about an hour and a half of down time on one of the busiest days for Apple Retail, the company has either restored the point-of-sale systems in the stores, or is in the process of doing so, and is grinding down long lines that developed as a result of the outage.

The initial reports of trouble came in from an AppleInsider reader at just before 4:00 p.m. Eastern time. We were told that customers were being refunded for a pre-paid reservation and being told to re-buy the device on the spot.

Social media lit up with people complaining that the pre-order system was completely down. Spot checks by AppleInsider at the locations cited on social media confirmed unspecified, and temporary, issues.

Some stores reported a complete point-of-sale system crash, and others said that only the pre-order and Apple upgrade program aspects were not functional.

The fault affected the majority of Apple Stores, with AppleInsider unable to find a store that was not impacted by the problem. The systems started coming back to life at about 5:00 p.m. Eastern time.

Apple has not as of yet responded to our inquires about the situation.

@AppleSupport do you support Apple Stores? Mall of Georgia store could use it right about now.
— Greg Odell (@ugaodawg) September 21, 2018

I'm at the Stonestown Apple store in San Francisco. They said it's been down for 45 minutes, systemwide, and no estimate how long it will be down.
— sophie curtis (@sophie_curtis) September 21, 2018