Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is facing big time supply constraints with its iPad Mini with Retina display, so how can those interested in buying one track it down? Apple Insider reports that there is an unofficial web took which is able to track the tablet’s availability at Apple stores in the U.S.
iPad Mini with Retina tool in a strange place
Perhaps what is most interesting about the tracking tool is where it was discovered. It was actually found on a website which focuses on sea turtle conservation. Seaturtle.org has an iDevice Availability Notifer, which offers an image of availability for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s iPad Mini with Retina display. The grid makes it very easy for users to search different areas around them and all across the U.S. to see which Apple Stores may have the new iPad Mini with Retina display in stock.
The majority of that chart was red, which means that in most Apple stores, the tablet was out of stock. In some parts of the country, the Wi-Fi model is available, although the model which adds cellular capabilities appears to be harder to find. Just a few stores offer only the 64-gigabyte models in stock.
How Apple’s iPad Mini is tracked
Seaturtle.org said it uses an XML service on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s website. The service is accessible to the public, and the site said it doesn’t use scraping techniques. This is important because Apple did shut down another online tracking tool because it scraped data from Apple’s online store.
Of course those who decide to check out the tool should keep in mind that the site does sometimes show error messages. Also it looked like it was crashing when we tried to visit it, so you may not even be able to view the site. The data does appear to match the information that’s on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s online store, however. Also the tool does not appear to list every Apple store in the U.S.
So why would a website devoted to sea turtles offer a tool that’s so far out of what it does? Its operators said they’re big Apple fanboys and always want to know when the new models are available. In addition, they said the website itself runs on products from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL).
