Apple is shutting all its stores outside China until March 27

Apple Store
(Image credit: Apple)

If you live outside China you won't be able to walk into an Apple Store for the next couple of weeks – they're all being shut down until March 27 to help prevent the further spread of the coronavirus around the world.

You'll still be able to shop and get support for your Apple products through the Apple website, but in terms of physical retail stores, everything is being paused for the time being.

"The most effective way to minimize risk of the virus's transmission is to reduce density and maximize social distance," explained Apple CEO Tim Cook in a statement.

"As rates of new infections continue to grow in other places, we’re taking additional steps to protect our team members and customers. We will be closing all of our retail stores outside of Greater China until March 27."

Risk management

"There is no mistaking the challenge of this moment," added Cook, admitting that it's not clear when the "greatest risk" will have passed and everything can start getting back to normal. Apple Store staff will still be paid in the meantime.

"The entire Apple family is indebted to the heroic first responders, doctors, nurses, researchers, public health experts and public servants globally who have given every ounce of their spirit to help the world meet this moment."

The coronavirus outbreak has already caused chaos with tech events worldwide, with Apple, Google and Microsoft all switching their major developer conferences to an online-only format.

And the health crisis looks likely to delay numerous product launches too – the iPhone 9 and 2020 iPad Pros are some of the devices that are rumored to have already had their launch dates pushed back.

Via MacRumors

TOPICS
David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

Latest in Tech
Ray-Ban smart glasses with the Cpperni logo, an LED array, and a MacBook Air with M4 next to ecah other.
ICYMI: the week's 7 biggest tech stories from Twitter's massive outage to iRobot's impressive new Roombas
A triptych image featuring the Sennheiser HD 505, Apple iPad Air 11-inch (2025), and Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (M4).
5 unmissable tech reviews of the week: why the MacBook Air (M4) should be your next laptop and the best sounding OLED TV ever
Apple iPhone 16e
Which affordable phone wins the mid-range race: the iPhone 16e, Nothing 3a, or Samsung Galaxy A56? Our latest podcast tells all
The Apple MacBook Air next to the Dyson Supersonic R and new AMD GPU
ICYMI: the week's 7 biggest tech stories from the best tech at MWC to Apple's new iPads and MacBooks
A triptych image featuring the Bose Solo Soundbar 2, Nothing Phone 3a Pro and the Panasonic Lumix S1R II.
5 trailblazing tech reviews of the week: Nothing's stylish, affordable flagship and why you should buy AMD's new graphics card over Nvidia's
The best tech of MWC 2025 examples, including the Nothing Phone 3a Pro, the Nubia Flip 2, and the Lenovo Solar PC
Best of MWC 2025: the 10 top tech launches we tried on the show floor
Latest in News
Google Pixel 8a in aloe green showing
Google Pixel 9a benchmark link teases the performance of the upcoming mid-ranger
Quordle on a smartphone held in a hand
Quordle hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #1148)
NYT Strands homescreen on a mobile phone screen, on a light blue background
NYT Strands hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #379)
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Monday, March 17 (game #645)
Apple iPhone 16 Pro HANDS ON
Leaked iPhone 17 dummy units may have given us our best look yet at all four models
A super close up image of the Google Gemini app in the Play Store
It's official: Google Assistant will be retired for phones this year, with Gemini taking over