[Request] Cheapest apple mac- complete system

rubadub

I can get it from the apple store with student discount, but where else can they be bought cheaper. Preferably europe as the VAT/duty is a real risk from the US.

It is not for me, so don't bother telling me why I would be better off with a PC!

rubadub

Anybody?

dil999

I'm not an expert, but I believe that Apple product are priced the same no matter where you buy them in the EU

rabbitinlights

Ye, they pretty much control the price, apart from the odd offer in a shop now and again...... the student price is the best your gonna get apart from the states.

lomb

rubadub wrote:

I can get it from the apple store with student discount, but where else can they be bought cheaper. Preferably europe as the VAT/duty is a real risk from the US.

It is not for me, so don't bother telling me why I would be better off with a PC!

buy a pc, they are half the price. have to seriously consider it anyway.

SouperComputer

retail margin for the ibook for example is UP TO 5%, and 7% on powerbooks and G5 towers. This is set by apple, and is based on the prices you see on their apple store. So you wont see much difference in price either on the streets or online.

The only way you will pick one up "cheap" is on an exchange rate, ebay where its listed wrongly or in the BnS where someone has one and they dont realise their value!

Student discount is about as good as it gets.

what apps do you plan running?

[edit] another way of saving a few bob is to wait until a newer revision of the model in mind is released. Usually the distributors knock 15-20% off the price. Although they dont allways do this, and sometime the reseller doesnt pass it on! [/edit]

rubadub

Thanks everybody, I thought the prices were fixed, just wanted to be sure.

lomb wrote:

buy a pc, they are half the price. have to seriously consider it anyway.

I know I am trying to get the person to go for it instead, the apple is costing 2000 with the discount and the spec is terrible for the money. They are doing mostly sound editing. I am trying to convince them to get a PC

bombidol

its basically a myth anyway that Macs are better than PCs for sound / image editing. It may have been the case 10 years ago but nowadays its pretty level

rubadub

bombidol wrote:

its basically a myth anyway that Macs are better than PCs for sound / image editing. It may have been the case 10 years ago but nowadays its pretty level

I would bet a €2000 pc would be better than a €2000 apple
this was the apple spec for €2000 with the discount

512MB DDR333 SDRAM - 1 SO-DIMM
ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 64MB
80GB Ultra ATA drive (5400rpm)
8x SuperDrive (DVDR/CD-RW)
AirPort Extreme Card
Backlit Keyboard & Mac OS
1.5GHz PowerPC G4
15.2-inch TFT display
56K internal modem
Power Adapter
Battery

colm_c

If you want to save some money on the mac, don't buy any extra RAM from apple because they charge way over the going rate.

Comparing Macs and PCs is a bit like comparing Apples and Oranges they both suit different markets and are built for different roles.

Also if you want a cheap ass mac just go for a Mac Mini and you can buy whatever Monitor, Keyboard and Mouse.

New PowerBooks do however rock!

savemejebus

also the spec doesn't have to compare with a pc cos of the different architectures, so less ram or clock speed doesn't mean it's under specced

donalin

Ya!! I agree. Im running Mac OS X 10.3 perfectly on my old iMac G3 450MHZ with 512mb of ram.

If you were to get an apple powerbook I would seriously recommend:
http://www.tddvision.com/products/computer/
1,760.15 EUR

lomb

rubadub wrote:

I would bet a €2000 pc would be better than a €2000 apple
this was the apple spec for €2000 with the discount

512MB DDR333 SDRAM - 1 SO-DIMM
ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 64MB
80GB Ultra ATA drive (5400rpm)
8x SuperDrive (DVDR/CD-RW)
AirPort Extreme Card
Backlit Keyboard & Mac OS
1.5GHz PowerPC G4
15.2-inch TFT display
56K internal modem
Power Adapter
Battery

crazy money isnt it for that? still will be a very nice piece of desktop furniture their designs are second to none

lomb

savemejebus wrote:

also the spec doesn't have to compare with a pc cos of the different architectures, so less ram or clock speed doesn't mean it's under specced

apple are ripping people off for the hardware, if u want to use less ram then i suppose one could just install linux on a pc.