Is This a Scam?

jabaro · Mar 11, 2003

An ad for Marbella Technologies appeared in the April issue of MacAddict. Can this possibly be for real?

http://www.applepurchaseprogram.com

Can he really get $1000 off the price of a new Mac? Is this the same Fred Lackey who created the Amazon and MSNBC sites and has published code in almost every Windows operating system?

http://www.fredlackey.com

John

Mr. Anderson · Mar 11, 2003

Those are some nice prices - anyone here ever use this? Sounds a bit on the scary side to me as well. 😕

D

Foxer · Mar 11, 2003

Very interesting. Not personally familiar with them, of course. They claim to be "paypal certified" - if they take paypal, you would have at least some minimal protections if nothing ever shows up. Who's going to be the guinea pig here? I want a 12-inch powerbook for 1 grand!

Soma_Addict · Mar 11, 2003

yes, it is

yes it is a scam. there was a post about this maybe a month ago and it drew a lot of attension.

apparently where they get you is that the price they quote you is an estimated price based on ordering a certain quanitity and using a developer purchase program when ordering to bring down the price. the real price will be quoted to you once the order has been placed but you have to front a non-refundable $250.

When they get ready to order and quote you the price of your individual system you can opt out of buying but they still keep your deposit of $250. So eventually they will finally tell you that you wont actually be saving money when you order and the real purchase price is the same as the apple store or more. You can of course opt out of the purchase and they make $250, or you can buy the computer for whatever price they say. Either way they make money. On one hand you get nothing and they get your $250 for not doing anything and on the other hand you wait around for them to finally get enough orders to purchase in bulk and you get stuck with whatever price they tell you. They will of course be holding your $250 hostage at that point.

Do not order from them. I do not have specific experience with buying from them but if you read the fine print you will see that they get to keep your deposit no matter if you buy the computer or not.

Soma Addict

LethalWolfe · Mar 11, 2003

Hmmm... I want it to be true. 🙂

Lethal

Foxer · Mar 11, 2003

Re: yes, it is

Originally posted by Soma_Addict
Do not order from them. I do not have specific experience with buying from them but if you read the fine print you will see that they get to keep your deposit no matter if you buy the computer or not.

Well, it was a nice dream while it lasted.

Soma_Addict · Mar 11, 2003

if you want

if anyone can find the original thread about this it would be most helpful. the people who posted on the thread were quite informative on this topic and debunking this scam.

if i remember correctly a couple of lawyers even joined the conversation.

Foxer · Mar 11, 2003

Re: if you want

iginally posted by Soma_Addict
if i remember correctly a couple of lawyers even joined the conversation.

I'm a lawyer, but I guess I never took the class on "bulk purchase computer scams." That old thread would be useful.

Dont Hurt Me · Mar 11, 2003

I think its a scam for the new mac user who doesnt know better. There was a add in mac addict magazine saying new macs for whatever. well you can get a new emac or classic imac for whatever. If something sounds to good to be true it usually is. Anyone looking for a new mac go to a known and reputable dealer. dont fart around with ebay and scamers otherwise you just may get what you didnt want!

jabaro · Mar 11, 2003

Thanks for the input. What I expected, I just wanted to hear if anybody had any experience or really got one of these great deals.

But what I really want to know is about all the other claims.

Is this guy really the creative force behind Amazon and Windows? 😕

If so, maybe he really does have some big-time connections. 😀

John

pantagruel · Mar 11, 2003

maybe its not a scam, someone should be the guenia pig! go ahead you know you want to.😛

MrMacMan · Mar 11, 2003

Originally posted by pantagruel
maybe its not a scam, someone should be the guenia pig! go ahead you know you want to.😛

how about we make a pool of money and I'll try buying. 😱 😀

GigaWire · Mar 11, 2003

well if we get 10 people to pool $350 a piece, we could create a premier ADC account, and all get 17in PBooks for 2639, instead of 3299; or a 1.42 w/ 23 in screen for 3758 instead of 4698. Plus, we'd get software seeds, as well as fresh copies of OS X on a monthly basis. 😱

Kwyjibo · Mar 11, 2003

intersting idea but can u send all the pbooks to different addresses.

000111one111000 · Mar 11, 2003

Technically, it's not a "scam." The fine print tells you all about the way they do things.

But Rik, the editor over at MacAddict, is already planning on pulling the ad. He just has to show it to the advertising dude's over there. He said they must have just let it slip through somehow, and the staff at MacAddict has no idea what is going in the mag in the realm of ads until they get their copy the same time we all get ours.

enoch

Simon Liquid · Mar 11, 2003

I doubt it.

Originally posted by Kwyjibo
intersting idea but can u send all the pbooks to different addresses.

It seems unlikely. What you need is someone everyone can trust to handle the money and reshipping the computers. Someone like me. Think about it, guys.

Nipsy · Mar 11, 2003

Originally posted by jabaro

Is this guy really the creative force behind Amazon and Windows? 😕

Sure he is. That's why he can't even get basic rollovers to work in Mozilla.

Eniregnat · Mar 11, 2003

seems to me, that despite the legal banter and disclaimers, it is still misleading.

Its a parascam at best.

Click on

RESERVE A SYSTEM
PAYMENT INSTRUCTIONS
FREQUENT QUESTIONS
EXSISTING MEMBERS
DISCLAMER
MESSAGE TO ALL

and you get:

By continuing, you acknowledge that you understand Marbella Technologies, Inc. is a broker. This means that we negotiate with resellers for volume purchasing and is not a representative, affiliate, or reseller of any computer company. We do not purchase, sell, or resell anything.

or

This area is reserved for existing members only. To begin, enter your reservation number in the box at the top of the page and click "GO!"

You can't get an answer unless you sign up?!!

Click through all the promises and you find an *.
*

Prices on this site are estimates or our target goals for negotiation.

macphoria · Mar 11, 2003

I say if anything is too good to be true, then it is not true.

MrMacMan · Mar 12, 2003

Originally posted by 000111one111000
Technically, it's not a "scam." The fine print tells you all about the way they do things.

But Rik, the editor over at MacAddict, is already planning on pulling the ad. He just has to show it to the advertising dude's over there. He said they must have just let it slip through somehow, and the staff at MacAddict has no idea what is going in the mag in the realm of ads until they get their copy the same time we all get ours.

enoch

do you work for macaddict or something? 😀

Great Mag, BTW.

Well the dream was nice intill you read the fine print.

Jaykay · Mar 13, 2003

...

What i want to know is, why is the 1.25 DP more expensive than the 1.42 DP?

Also fine print = "Apple," "G4," "PowerMac," "iMac," and "PowerBook" are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.*Prices on this site are estimates or our target goals for negotiation._ The actual price of the computer will not be known until all reservations are taken and the order is placed with the reseller.

Gus · Mar 13, 2003

Sic 'em Apple legal

i thinmk that our friends in Cupertino caught wind of this site. From the site:

"Apology

We wanted to consume a few lines on our new site and publicly apologize to a certain hardware manufacturer (they know who they are) for using images of your machines on our site._ We assumed that images of the computers would be allowed since everyone else was using them on other sites and hundreds of auctions._ We did our best to stay away from logos and those types of things._ We hope you like the changes.

February 8, 2003

Website Face Lift

Long story short, we made a certain manufacturer a bit upset by using photos of their machines._ So, we offered to take down our site and give it a major overhaul._ From this point on, no mention of any system manufacturer or anything even resembling a trademark will ever be seen on our site."

HeHe. This has GOT to be Apple they are talking about!

Regards,
Gus

Foxer · Mar 13, 2003

Re: Sic 'em Apple legal

[QUOTEi thinmk that our friends in Cupertino caught wind of this site. [/QUOTE]

While I would hope you're right, those notices are dated last month, and there are still pictures of the PowerMac on the site.

eyelikeart · Mar 13, 2003

I have always been told...

if it sounds too good to be true...

then it probably is... 🙄

prfoot · May 24, 2003

marbella technologies

Watch out for this company---it is a total legal and complete scam---they took my money and I have nothing to show for it---the "hundreds of dollars" below retail turned out to be $250.00 below standard retail which was no savings at all if you consider I already paid$250.oo for the reservation which of course Marbella now keeps. I was told I didn't have to buy the machine---yeah thanks. It took me 4 months after purchasing my reservation--- of complaining and emailing to finally get referred to their "reseller "who told me there is no way that anyone can sell apple machines at the prices they advertise on the website. When you complain they hide behind their disclaimers that they don't guarantee prices and that all buyers know going in that deposits are not refundable no matter what but their website is totally bogus and false advertising. In addition they have their phone lines set up so they do not have to talk to you directly and they call back at their convenience. Stay away and keep your money.

Is This a Scam?

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