Is it worth buying an iPad in America?

kaji

Is it worth buying an iPad in America? I will be in Washington state this summer and would like an iPad mini (retina one) but am a bit of a newbie with regards Apple products. Is it worth buying them abroad, has anyone before?

Blazer

absolutely..you'll save about €100 or so on each model.
I bought my ipad air in the US and had no problems with warranty etc here in Ireland.

FourFourRED

Blazer wrote: »

absolutely..you'll save about €100 or so on each model.
I bought my ipad air in the US and had no problems with warranty etc here in Ireland.

You wouldn't have warranty issues because the model numbers are the same internationally

Blazer

agreed..I just call it out in case people wonder about it
The iphones on the other hand are not covered here.

kaji

Cool, thanks so much you guys! Deffo going to buy one now! Wonder if I should get iPad mini (retina) or iPad air :0

Blazer

all depends on what you plan to do with it.
If you only plan to use it at home then the air is the way to go.
But if you're mobile and plan to bring it with you then the iPad mini is the one.
Both have the same specs as far as I recall for this generation.

Zcott

I couldn't do without my Air, the bigger screen is perfect for doing stuff without a laptop.

kaji

Guess the iPad air is the way to go so, since I already have a large smartphone. Probably wiser to get the air. Excited!

FourFourRED

I'm using the retina mini & find it perfect for my needs. Have a 13" MBP so an 8" ipad fits into my Apple family well.

Be prepared for some awesome battery life too - see attached image

kaji

Wow, that's a lotta juice! So hard to decide between Air and mini

FourFourRED

kaji wrote: »

Wow, that's a lotta juice! So hard to decide between Air and mini

I know how you feel. I bought both of them originally but returned my Air. Didn't need the bigger screen as I prefer to bring mine around with me. If yours is going to be used at home most of the time you will probably benefit from the bigger screen.

bop1977

Aodhagan wrote: »

I know how you feel. I bought both of them originally but returned my Air. Didn't need the bigger screen as I prefer to bring mine around with me. If yours is going to be used at home most of the time you will probably benefit from the bigger screen.

I'm the opposite. I had a mini and got rid of it for an iPad Air. The air is only a small bit bigger than the mini and can be held in one hand comfortably.

Stinicker

I got an iPad air from New York two weeks ago, 16GB wifi model, works a treat, really starting to get into it now and love the thing.

It cost me €374.47 which was $474.99 or $517.14 including the sales Tax of 8.875% in Bestbuy which was $25 ($26.15 incl tax) cheaper than the Apple store in 5th Avenue.

The only difference is the charger but this has interchangeable heads and I got a British/Irish Plug head on eBay for around €7, €3.50 for the plug and €3.50 for Parcel Motel Delivery. Alternatively you could get a two-pin plug converter in Dealz for €1.49 which I used for the first few days until the UK/Irish plug arrived.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/151280550102?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649

The iPad Air is €489.00 at the Irish Apple online store so I saved over €115.

Zcott

Savings on Macs are even better, so if anyone is going to the states soon and wants to pick me up a retina MacBook Pro...

Phoebas

Just be aware of the sales tax when doing the calculation. It isn't normally included in the sticker price.

hfallada

Phoebas wrote: »

Just be aware of the sales tax when doing the calculation. It isn't normally included in the sticker price.

Not if you buy from an online retailer that is out of state. If you look up a high value item eg macbook. It will you which state its being shipped from so you can dodge the sales tax. Its totally legal and its why online retailing is rapidly growing in the us

kaji

So if I'm in America, let's say New York- it's cheaper to buy an ipad online from say Montana where sales tax is low?

towger

kaji wrote: »

So if I'm in America, let's say New York- it's cheaper to buy an ipad online from say Montana where sales tax is low?

If you are in New York, then New Jersey is the place to go for lower sales tax. Just a short hop over the river.

hfallada

kaji wrote: »

So if I'm in America, let's say New York- it's cheaper to buy an ipad online from say Montana where sales tax is low?

If you buy from a retailer in Montana. There is no sales tax.

Migworks

Stinicker wrote: »

I got an iPad air from New York two weeks ago, 16GB wifi model, works a treat, really starting to get into it now and love the thing.

It cost me €374.47 which was $474.99 or $517.14 including the sales Tax of 8.875% in Bestbuy which was $25 ($26.15 incl tax) cheaper than the Apple store in 5th Avenue.

The only difference is the charger but this has interchangeable heads and I got a British/Irish Plug head on eBay for around €7, €3.50 for the plug and €3.50 for Parcel Motel Delivery. Alternatively you could get a two-pin plug converter in Dealz for €1.49 which I used for the first few days until the UK/Irish plug arrived.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/151280550102?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649

The iPad Air is €489.00 at the Irish Apple online store so I saved over €115.

Just so you know, even though the deal expired yesterday, groupon were doing 16gb wifi iPad air for €399! Quite a few boards users bought them and was all legit! I'm sure the deal will come again, I was skeptical as to how one would get such a discount but seeing the USA prices I guess some retailer managed to buy a Job lot there and brung them over to Ireland to sell. Shame the discount ended yesterday....,

Gileadi

Just in the states myself and was able to get the $100 student discount off a new MacBook Pro in Chicago without even needing to show a student card.

I told the sales guy that I was interested but the price was abit much, after about 2 mins he just mentioned "Hey are you a student, cause you kinda look like one, I can get you 100 bucks off you know".

Not sure if there is a similar offer on iPads but could be worth chancing, even if you have some old student ID card

Zcott

Nice bargain!

william

Would prices at the US international airports be better or worse than US cities?

Gileadi

I'm not sure if the price would change much between downtown and the airport but what is worth mentioning is the different sales tax.

This will vary state by state, from my experience the lowest will be around 5% and the highest closer to 10%. This is added to the price you see on display.

If your doing some travelling around different states it may be worth referencing the various taxes to see where is the best place to buy

PaddyFagan

william wrote: »

Would prices at the US international airports be better or worse than US cities?

Varies a bit in my experience. Some airports have BestBuy vending machines with a range of items, including some iPads. They say on them that they match local downtown prices - but as some else said watch the sales tax.

Paddy

kaji

Guys, OP here and I found the groupon deal (thanks Migworks). Is this a good deal? Would prefer to have my ipad before I go to America also.

Migworks

kaji wrote: »

Guys, OP here and I found the groupon deal (thanks Migworks). Is this a good deal? Would prefer to have my ipad before I go to America also.

Is it still running? Thought it ended last week? If they have renewed it I might be able to go for it in a few weeks! Here's hoping!!!

kaji

Migworks wrote: »

Is it still running? Thought it ended last week? If they have renewed it I might be able to go for it in a few weeks! Here's hoping!!!

Just found it there:

http://www.groupon.ie/deals/special/gg-photo-direct-46/39070058

Should I just get it now instead of in America? It seems like a good deal doesn't it. And this is the most recent iPad isn't it? I've decided not to get a mini as I handled one in Tescos and found it to be a bit small for my hand.

Migworks

kaji wrote: »

Just found it there:

http://www.groupon.ie/deals/special/gg-photo-direct-46/39070058

Should I just get it now instead of in America? It seems like a good deal doesn't it. And this is the most recent iPad isn't it? I've decided not to get a mini as I handled one in Tescos and found it to be a bit small for my hand.

Yup just checked and the deal is renewed for €399 but also now an iPad mini 32gb for €375 too!

FourFourRED

Migworks wrote: »

Yup just checked and the deal is renewed for €399 but also now an iPad mini 32gb for €375 too!

That's the only iPad Mini but does include cellular.

kaji

I'm gonna bite the bullet and order the iPad Air now from Groupon! My wallet is gonna be sore after this week

Migworks

kaji wrote: »

I'm gonna bite the bullet and order the iPad Air now from Groupon! My wallet is gonna be sore after this week

Good luck! Think its up to 7 days delivery. Can't go wrong with groupon.

Now if I can only raise the funds in time!

AlanS181824

My mother got a 32GB air whilst she was over.

It's a great tablet, very sturdy in the hand.

I have a Nexus 7 and just prefer Android in general but if you're after an iPad then the air is the one to get!

fox007

Zcott wrote: »

Savings on Macs are even better, so if anyone is going to the states soon and wants to pick me up a retina MacBook Pro...

Yea this is what I'm doing when going to flordia in June, I'm buying a refurbishied Mac Pro or air not sure which one yet tho getting it shipped to the locale store for even bigger sayings just can't deceive between pro and air with the upgraded ram etc as I had a 2010 bought from new sold it last week so it's costing me €50-€100 to upgrade

Zcott

fox007 wrote: »

Yea this is what I'm doing when going to flordia in June, I'm buying a refurbishied Mac Pro or air not sure which one yet tho getting it shipped to the locale store for even bigger sayings just can't deceive between pro and air with the upgraded ram etc as I had a 2010 bought from new sold it last week so it's costing me €50-€100 to upgrade

I'd probably go for the Pro. Air's big selling point is portability, and if you're travelling it's a great machine. However, if you're just using it as a desktop replacement, go for the Pro. And pick me one up while you're there.

Eoin

I bought a refurbed 13" Air last year - I was worried about the small screen size, but I've actually found it very usable for several hours at a time. I can't remember now why I didn't for the MBP, but I've found the Air absolutely brilliant. Performance is good; I don't have any intense graphic apps on the go, but would have a couple of VMs running.

Anyway, check out what refurb deals are available online about a week before you fly out. If you get the timing right, you can get it shipped to a store near where you're staying and pick it up from there.

boreder

fox007 wrote: »

Yea this is what I'm doing when going to flordia in June, I'm buying a refurbishied Mac Pro or air not sure which one yet tho getting it shipped to the locale store for even bigger sayings just can't deceive between pro and air with the upgraded ram etc as I had a 2010 bought from new sold it last week so it's costing me €50-€100 to upgrade

You need an American credit card to buy from the US online store – even if you plan to pick it up from a retail store.

Eoin

You need to enter an American billing address alright. My hotel address worked fine.

tech

ipad mini for €250 or ipad 2 for 278 on apple refurb store

Sam Mac

For anyone deciding between the iPad Air or the mini retina, the colour gamut issue with the mini retina turned me off getting it. I actually compared them both side by side and the colours are much more accurate on the Air. It's a damn pity because the Mini retina would've been much more portable for myself but I'm not spending that amount of cash on an inferior screen, sorry Apple. I went for the 32GB Air which I got brand new in box for €470.00 shipped so can't complain really. It just sucks about the gamut issue on the retina mini.