Australian iPod Pricing

[squeakytoy]

Are there any Aussies here who have recently bought an iPod?

I got a 10GB one just before christmas for the local RRP of AUD$529. The just-announced 15GB, which has the same RRP in the USA, now sells here for AUD$449.

I (any many other Aussies) just lost $80 based on Apples arbitrary exchange rate?!? No fair! :mad:

[ghostboy]

Well it wasn't RECENTLY as such. But I bought the 30gb iPod, with my student discount, paying $919. It was only about 2 weeks later that they released the 40gb for even less.

Wasn't a happy camper :) But what can you do?

[squeakytoy]

My mate also bought a 40GB one on Saturday. Naturally, he's just copped a ~$100 premium for no apparent reason.

He's going to the Apple Store today to see what they say.

A free remote or dock to ease the pain would be nice :)

[back2bondi]

The exchange rate diffferences is blowing the pricing of Apple product in Oz completely out of whack.

I want to buy a PB15" but it will cost AUD1300 more in Australia than in the US.

It's much cheaper for me to buy in the US, pay the shipping and duty - I'm still ahead.

I don't think their pricing has adjusted for the big shift in the AUD v. USD. They better soon or they'll lose my sale to the US.

[aswitcher]

Yeah Apple seem to be waiting for hardware updates before addressing the exchange rate issue. For me it means waiting for the new iMac or laptops to appear before I purchase - and I will wait as I already have been waiting 2 months+ and don't want to be ripped off a $1000 AUD PLUS just because this seems to be their policy.

Jason

[B@SS_SHOCK]

Yeah I noticed that you usually have to wait for a new hardware line to see if they change the price according to AUD vs. USD. They never ever change the price for a product already in Apple stores, even if our currency was dollar for dollar!

back2bondi maybe it's good to check out some asian currencies, I don't know the exchange rates now but my friend a while back gotta iPod $150 cheaper than prices here!

btw, why haven't they updated the Apple Australia website?

[squeakytoy]

I was looking at buying a new Mac too, but it looks like I'll be putting that on hold until updates come through at the new 'iPod Exchange Rate' of USD * 1.5...

Like I said, I can handle my purchase being outdated by increased specs (like the extra 5GB now in the low end iPod), but not being ripped off just because a 5-10c climb in the Aussie Dollar is ignored by Apple Australia.

[manitoubalck]

Glad to see all the Aussies come out of the wod work:D, how are you all. Dam we didn't win the test series.

Anyway, Yes there are serious pricing imbalances between the US and AUS apple stores. The Aussie dollar is @ 78UC cents, and computer hardware needs to adjust to the change in economic climate.

My bike has dropped $700AUD from my 2003 model (bought in March) to 2004 model (avaliable now,) and the 2004 model has better specs. This is good news for PC computer buyers once old invintories are sold. Apple better do something to.

[squeakytoy]

Originally posted by manitoubalck

My bike has dropped $700AUD from my 2003 model (bought in March) to 2004 model (avaliable now,) and the 2004 model has better specs.

I was lucky enough to wait for my 2004 Giant VT. I saved money and got the better specs on that one :)

[j763]

I'm sorry but I find it hilarious that people would complain that Apple Australia is charging too little.

It's hardly as much of an Apple thing as it is a FOREX thing.

The Aussie dollar has gone from being, what, 50 US cents a year ago to 75 cents now. Excl the Euro, the Aussie Dollar has made the most ground percentagewise (?) of any major currency.

...Plus... the likelyhood of new shipments of iPods getting into Apple Australia at the moment are incredibly low.

[back2bondi]

Originally posted by squeakytoy
I was looking at buying a new Mac too, but it looks like I'll be putting that on hold until updates come through at the new 'iPod Exchange Rate' of USD * 1.5...


I'd pay 1.5x for a PB - that'd make it just under 4k for the 15" superdrive but I won't hold my breath. Apple Oz are well aware of the option of buying direct from the US (if you have a local person who can ship it) but don't seem too concerned.

The warranty is global so how can you lose buying from the US?

BTW I bought a 15gb ipod 2 weeks before the upgrade to 20gb and price drop last year. I was bummed for a week or two :( but I still haven't filled the 15gb yet so I'm over it.:)

[squeakytoy]

Originally posted by j763
I'm sorry but I find it hilarious that people would complain that Apple Australia is charging too little.


You're over simplifying our discussion. We're not complaining that Apple charge too little.

We're unhappy about getting charged 6 month old exchange rates, particularly after the recent significant rise in the value of our dollar, only to see the prices adjusted right after a purchase.

[aswitcher]

This is doubly true when for things like iPods they are clearly not old stock.

[mac15]

The price is really good, compare it to iRiver 10GB player which is a whopping $629AUS, the ipod is a steal.

[awulf]

If you look now you can see PC's with much better specs than lets say the eMac with a cheaper price, this is probably because of the PC manufacturers updating the pricing to compensate for the strengthening AU$ and this is making Macs look MUCH more expensive here. So Apple Australia really needs to fix this if they don't want to loose potential customers to the PC manufacturers.

[oingoboingo]

Originally posted by B@SS_SHOCK
btw, why haven't they updated the Apple Australia website?

The Apple Australia site has been updated for the Xserve G5, since it's shipping immediately, and also for iLife '04 since it's shipping im about 10 days. It was mentioned in the keynote that the iPod would be available in the US from February, and worldwide in April (I think), so I wouldn't expect to see anything on Apple Australia's site for another month or two.

Some friends from work and I recently purchased a bunch of PowerBooks together (we got 2 x 17" PowerBooks and 2 x 12" PowerBooks in one hit). We spent a bit of time ringing around the various dealers in Sydney to see if we could get a bulk discount (we ended up getting them from AppleCentre Taylor Square for a good price), but we also tried sourcing direct from Apple USA. Of course, Apple USA referred us to Apple Australia. One thing I didn't think of at the time was buying through Amazon. Has anyone tried buying Apple hardware direct through somewhere like Amazon.com which doesn't have any problem of cutting out local dealers? I'm thinking an iPod mini might be significantly cheaper direct from the US than buying locally through Apple Australia. Any thoughts?

[woodsey]

I agree completely. Apple would sell a lot more machines in Australia if they charged a REASONABLE price, compared to US prices.

At current exchange rates of around AU$ 0.76 per US$ 1.00:

The dual 1.8 G5, which retails for US $2499 should retail for AU $3258. In reality, it retails for AU $4399 and therefore is AU $1141 OVERPRICED.

.Mac which retails for US $99 sells for AU $189, when it should sell for AU $129.

Not only does apple rip us of, but we are treated like second rate customers, with lack of support for iPhoto, iTunes, Sherlock. Addidionally, we have to wait longer for new products to reach Australia, such as the iPod mini, which wont come here until two months after the US release, at the earliest.

[woodsey]

Originally posted by oingoboingo
The Apple Australia site has been updated for the Xserve G5, since it's shipping immediately, and also for iLife '04 since it's shipping im about 10 days. It was mentioned in the keynote that the iPod would be available in the US from February, and worldwide in April (I think), so I wouldn't expect to see anything on Apple Australia's site for another month or two.

Some friends from work and I recently purchased a bunch of PowerBooks together (we got 2 x 17" PowerBooks and 2 x 12" PowerBooks in one hit). We spent a bit of time ringing around the various dealers in Sydney to see if we could get a bulk discount (we ended up getting them from AppleCentre Taylor Square for a good price), but we also tried sourcing direct from Apple USA. Of course, Apple USA referred us to Apple Australia. One thing I didn't think of at the time was buying through Amazon. Has anyone tried buying Apple hardware direct through somewhere like Amazon.com which doesn't have any problem of cutting out local dealers? I'm thinking an iPod mini might be significantly cheaper direct from the US than buying locally through Apple Australia. Any thoughts?

Amazon.com only allows shipping of iPods to the US

[oingoboingo]

Originally posted by woodsey
Amazon.com only allows shipping of iPods to the US

Ahh crap well there goes that plan. At this stage it may be cheaper for me to use frequent flyer points to fly to SF or LA, buy an iPod at the airport duty free, and fly straight home. :-)

[aswitcher]

Originally posted by woodsey
I agree completely. Apple would sell a lot more machines in Australia if they charged a REASONABLE price, compared to US prices.

At current exchange rates of around AU$ 0.76 per US$ 1.00:

The dual 1.8 G5, which retails for US $2499 should retail for AU $3258. In reality, it retails for AU $4399 and therefore is AU $1141 OVERPRICED.

.Mac which retails for US $99 sells for AU $189, when it should sell for AU $129.

Not only does apple rip us of, but we are treated like second rate customers, with lack of support for iPhoto, iTunes, Sherlock. Addidionally, we have to wait longer for new products to reach Australia, such as the iPod mini, which wont come here until two months after the US release, at the earliest.

I guess they will argue 10% for GST and the rest for airfreight shipping...

+~35% more seems pretty damn rude nethertheless.

Jason

[oingoboingo]

Originally posted by aswitcher
I guess they will argue 10% for GST and the rest for airfreight shipping...

+~35% more seems pretty damn rude nethertheless.

Jason

Yeah, I bet those shipping costs for a 1 year .Mac subscription are a real killer :-). A somewhat reasonable proposition at AUD$99, but out of the question for AUD$189.

[woodsey]

Originally posted by aswitcher
I guess they will argue 10% for GST and the rest for airfreight shipping...

+~35% more seems pretty damn rude nethertheless.

Jason

Shouldn't shipping be cheaper to Australia? Where do most of Apple's products come from? I would assume most are assembled in Asia, which is closer to Australia than the US.

[ghostboy]

RE the discussion about purchasing Apple products from the US due to cheaper prices, has anyone actually done this? How would you go about it?

Recently a friend of mine was in NY and I had arranged for him to pick me up a 12" Powerbook but some financial problems arose and it didn't happen.

Paying $2100 (even allowing for freighting/whatever, an extra $200?) instead of $2999 is an absolute steal

[MyLeftNut]

Hate to think what the resellers are getting out of this, they must be getting a good deal with exchange rates and apples pricing the way they are now...

I would get a PB 17 but at $5499.00 but its overpriced and underpowered IMHO. US pricing for same is $2999.00. Using current exchange rate...works out to $3990.00 approx. $1500.00 difference? Gotta be joking...:(

[oingoboingo]

Originally posted by MyLeftNut
Hate to think what the resellers are getting out of this, they must be getting a good deal with exchange rates and apples pricing the way they are now...

I would get a PB 17 but at $5499.00 but its overpriced and underpowered IMHO. US pricing for same is $2999.00. Using current exchange rate...works out to $3990.00 approx. $1500.00 difference? Gotta be joking...:(

From bargaining around Sydney with the various AppleCentre dealers while shopping for 2 x 17" and 2 x 12" PowerBooks, i didn't get the impression that margins were all that fat...it certainly didn't seem like they were making anything like $1500 on a 17" PowerBook. Of course I was probably just being outbargained (or the Sydney Macintosh market is just really uncompetitive), but I'd be willing to bet that the spoils of the US/AUD price disrepancies end up in the pocket of Apple, rather that its' resellers.

Anyone with any inside knowledge care to comment?

[squeakytoy]

While I did start this thread, I don't agree with using the actual exchange rate to decide how much we 'should' be paying here. There's too many factors (shipping, GST, smaller market, local advertising, local wages, daily exchange rate fluctuations...) for that to be an accurate figure.

What I do support, is the theory that the same conversion from the USA RRP to Aus RRP on the newly priced iPods should apply to all Apple gear. This theory makes practically every other Apple item overpriced here.

Instead of waiting for a hardware update on each model in their range, prices need to be adjusted across the board, not every week, but surely after such a dramatic rise in the AUD.

I'm sure Apple wouldn't want to cop the loss if the Aussie dollar dropped to 40c tomorrow...

[jxyama]

my two cents...

i realize that in this day and age of global market and internet, it's hard to understand such a big price disparity after conversion... but it's pretty complicated stuff. apple oz does its thing to price itself in the intended market, australia. it pretty obvious that they don't (and CAN't) take the apple u.s. prices and convert to oz dollars...

a can of coke is $1 in japan. it's 50 to 75 cents in the U.S. how much is it in australia? why would there be any difference?

[squeakytoy]

A can of coke here is $1.40 - $1.60, but the exchange rate itself is not really the issue.

The fact that the same product can drop in price significantly in one day for no other reason than the exchange rate (ie the USA price remained steady) means that:

a) people who bought it yesterday get burned, and

b) other products are obviously due for a price reduction. Why would you buy, say, a Powerbook now and expect to see $600+ knocked off it in the near future even without an official Apple price reduction?

[MyLeftNut]

er...in no way was I suggesting that $1500.00 should be taken as an indication of the profit resellers are making on the powerbook. As you mention oingo, if there were any resellers out there willing to give a breakdown of the real costs involved then that would be enlightening.

I just doubt, even with all the costs, Australian customers are getting real value for money when it quite often is a complaint of American mac enthusiasts (even with US pricing), things could be better value. Yeah I know, we are paying for a premium product but we here in OZ seem to be paying premium, premium prices.

[squeakytoy]

I've been told by my local Apple Centre Guy that he makes only 8% on the iPod. Dunno how accurate that is, but when you consider he also gets slugged 2-3% by credit card companies, you can see when some computer shops pass that surcharge on to the customer.

[Icekey]

I'm looking at ordering stuff from the US. My brother is in NY which becomes an issue due to their 8.75% tax. Does anyone know if he gets taxed the same if ordered online? I guess he will :(

Either way, I make a saving of roughly around 500 bucks if ordered through the US. What I want to know though is, for powerbooks in the US, do they offer the 3 year warranty thing for educational purchases in the US as well?

I guess the best thing to do is to wait till the 16th, see if price drops come with the powerbooks at that time and hopefully I'll be a happly chappy over here.

As for the iPod, the 413 dollar price tag for the 15 gig on education is an awesome price.

[manitoubalck]

Originally posted by squeakytoy
I was lucky enough to wait for my 2004 Giant VT. I saved money and got the better specs on that one :)

Insurance payed for mine, and Warrenty is paying for the 2004 bike, because the 2003 is defective. I'm laughing all the way down the hill.

[manitoubalck]

Originally posted by oingoboingo
From bargaining around Sydney with the various AppleCentre dealers while shopping for 2 x 17" and 2 x 12" PowerBooks, i didn't get the impression that margins were all that fat...it certainly didn't seem like they were making anything like $1500 on a 17" PowerBook. Of course I was probably just being outbargained (or the Sydney Macintosh market is just really uncompetitive), but I'd be willing to bet that the spoils of the US/AUD price disrepancies end up in the pocket of Apple, rather that its' resellers.

Anyone with any inside knowledge care to comment?

The prices of Apple mac's are set by apple corp. hence the retailers have little room to move. However on the PC front, stores just buy from whole salers, and love the smell of our plastic money. Sorry;) but if you want a good deal on comuters you only get them on the PC side.


Part two of this post: I'm waiting for the price of the old Dual 1.25GHz PM to be re adjusted, there sstill charging ove $3000:confused:.

I think apple have too much pride.

[manitoubalck]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by jxyama
[B]my two cents...

i realize that in this day and age of global market and internet, it's hard to understand such a big price disparity after conversion... but it's pretty complicated stuff. apple oz does its thing to price itself in the intended market, australia. it pretty obvious that they don't (and CAN't) take the apple u.s. prices and convert to oz dollars...
[B][QUOTE]

The point is I could order a whole buch of stock from the US, Ship it over here, and still make over $1000AUD, and still be under cutting apple Australia, I wouldn't have to pay GST since I'm selling a secondhand unit. The warrenty is good, and all is happy except apple Australia.

Hey, That's not such a bad idea:rolleyes:

[woodsey]

Anyone care to speculate on the Australian price of the iPod mini?

I say somewhere around the AU $375 mark.

[CalfCanuck]

Originally posted by Icekey
I'm looking at ordering stuff from the US. My brother is in NY which becomes an issue due to their 8.75% tax. Does anyone know if he gets taxed the same if ordered online? I guess he will
If your brother orders from an established on-line company based in a certain states the computer will be shipped sales tax free (these are gathered, and the rates set, at a state by state level - there is no US federal sales tax).

Check out MacConnection as well - they've been around for 20 years, and I got 512MB free RAM on a G4 iBook that shipped just weeks after they were released.

Also, here's a comparison site with current promotions for you to compare:

http://www.macprices.com/g4tracker.shtml

(edit: by "certain states", I mean if your brother orders from a mail order or web-site in New York, or from a company that has "a business presence" in NY, they will have to collect the sales tax for shipping to NY.

So ordering from the web site of a company that has stores in all states will mean EVERYONE has to pay sales tax. Thus mail order (or web) businesses usually set up in only one location that gives them maximum sales tax advantages)

[aswitcher]

I did some mucking around with Australian markups to find average cost based on $1 AUD dollars equals $0.74 US cents.

I note an average of

eMacs 29%
iMacs 31%
G5s 31%

iBooks 29%
PBs 38% - 12" Super highest at 39.81%
iPods 11% or 18.5% for 40 gig.

-> MiniPod should be $369 or $379 if about 11%

Why roughly 30%?
GST for 10% Rest shipping/profit?

Why are the PBs a clear 7% more on top, and 9% above iBooks? Are desktops all airfreighted as well, if so I think a 20kg e or imac versus a 3.3kg PB makes no sense...

Things to wonder about

Jason