Apple Inc.'s website has removed the "Store" tab, and the company that invented the Mac, iPad, and iPhone has ditched the entire standalone "store.apple.com" online shop. The newly designed site includes Buy buttons on various product pages that place items in a shopping bag instead of the old-school virtual cart.
Multiple shopping bag options are available. Visitors can view selected products for purchase, order statuses, and favorited items.
An Apple spokesperson explained that its move gives customers one destination to get information. They can also buy products at the one site.
The company noted in a statement that the synthesized website includes the best features from the company's main website and the online store, according to Mashable. The need to navigate between a pair of sites is now a thing of the past.
Within time it will be clear whether or not visitors prefer the California-based company's redesigned website. However, netizens have already observed that the general shopping experience is now faster and smoother. That is due to two sites being collapsed into one.
Interestingly, Apple updated its website without needing to shut it down for upgrades, according to Engadget. There was no downtime at all.
Over 1 billion people yearly visit Apple's online retail store. Shoppers were previously directed there when they clicked on the "Store" button found on the company homepage.
The online Apple Store was launched in November 1997. Last year the App Store alone generated more than $10 billion in revenue for developers of games and apps designed for owners of iOS mobile devices such as smartphones, smartwatches, and tablet computers.