ADC Store Cheapest Way to buy a Mac?

[svalentine]

ADC Student Membership $99.00
17" MBP 2.66Ghz (Base Model) $2239.00
Total= $2338.00

17" MBP 2.66Ghz (Base Model) (Student Discount) $2599.00
Total= $2599.00

ADC Membership: http://developer.apple.com/products/membership.html
ADC Store: http://store.apple.com/us_adc_38839/browse/home/shop_mac/family/macbook_pro?mco=MTE3MDE

 

[kastenbrust]

thats correct but you should really be a developer before using that.

 

[Tallest Skil]

thats correct but you should really be a developer before using that.

He won't be able to get the discount unless he can prove that he is, so it's okay.

You also can't directly link to the Developer Store, by the way. It will never work.

 

[FunkyMonkey]

Does that mean with the free online ADC membership, you don't get access to the ADC discount store?

 

[Tallest Skil]

Does that mean with the free online ADC membership, you don't get access to the ADC discount store?

That's right. Did you really think that Apple would give you a 20% discount for just typing your e-mail address?

 

[svalentine]

All it says is

ADC Student Membership
If you are 18 years of age or older and enrolled in a college or university, the ADC Student Membership provides the tools and resources you need to take your development skills to the next level.

and then you get 1 discounted item

 

[Tallest Skil]

All it says is

ADC Student Membership
If you are 18 years of age or older and enrolled in a college or university, the ADC Student Membership provides the tools and resources you need to take your development skills to the next level.

and then you get 1 discounted item

Yes. You sign up for the service, then you fax them your student ID card and a copy of your schedule. I'm not sure if you need computer classes on it or not.

 

[THX1139]

Yes. You sign up for the service, then you fax them your student ID card and a copy of your schedule. I'm not sure if you need computer classes on it or not.

You don't.

 

[Mactagonist]

Yes. You sign up for the service, then you fax them your student ID card and a copy of your schedule. I'm not sure if you need computer classes on it or not.

They really arnt that strict.

 

[Tallest Skil]

They really arnt that strict.

In terms of classes? No. In terms of that's what you have to do to sign up? Yes, they are.

 

[SteveMobs]

It's really not that difficult, it just takes some time, the OP understands it correctly. You send them a copy of your transcript, student ID, $99 and you're set, then you get the one time discount at the ADC store. I do believe you have to be at least an engineering student, that counts as developer. Two of my friends did it, they're electrical and system engineers.

 

[TheSVD]

duuno if thats cheap, my £1399 macbook pro got knocked down to £1,180 though, so figure that out in dollars
That was with the UK higher education discount.

 

[THX1139]

Since you only get one lifetime discount, make sure you maximize your purchase. I used my membership to buy a Macpro and 24" ACD and saved around $300. If you're only spending a couple of thousand, it might not be worth it. You might want to save it if you plan to buy a big system later. You have to jump through a few hoops while they confirm your enrollment. Unlike the regular student discount, they physically confirm your enrollment for developer hardware discount via faxes and phone calls.

 

[THX1139]

I do believe you have to be at least an engineering student, that counts as developer...

Wrong. Unless they changed it in the last couple of years, I got mine when I was taking my general education classes at a community college. I didn't even have to have a declared major! I've since transferred to a 4 year college... but that's a different story.

 

[Norco]

Wrong. Unless they changed it in the last couple of years, I got mine when I was taking my general education classes at a community college. I didn't even have to have a declared major! I've since transferred to a 4 year college... but that's a different story.

Second that... my schedule just said I was a Business Major, didn't say my concentration (IT), and they had no problem.

 

[Demosthenes X]

I believe they also send you a copy of the current OS, and any new OS that is released during your membership time. So if you sign up now you'll likely get a free upgrade to Snow Leopard when it comes out, which is another good reason to go ahead.

The discount is more worthwhile on higher-end systems, but since you're looking at the 17" MBP, you're certainly getting your money's worth.

 

[Tallest Skil]

I believe they also send you a copy of the current OS, and any new OS that is released during your membership time. So if you sign up now you'll likely get a free upgrade to Snow Leopard when it comes out, which is another good reason to go ahead.

They did when I signed up, but I also got the Developer Connection box and a disk of SDKs and whatnot.

Now it is being said that all things available to students are only online and that you do not get the box.

I don't know how that affects the free Leopard and potential Snow Leopard upgrade, but I know that they wouldn't give you the ability to direct-download the OS.

 

[THX1139]

I believe they also send you a copy of the current OS, and any new OS that is released during your membership time. So if you sign up now you'll likely get a free upgrade to Snow Leopard when it comes out, which is another good reason to go ahead.

The discount is more worthwhile on higher-end systems, but since you're looking at the 17" MBP, you're certainly getting your money's worth.

You get a copy of the current OS, but you WON'T get Snow Leopard. Getting a copy of Leopard is irrelevant because you'll get it when you buy your computer. You'll also get a developer tools DVD every month which could come in hand if you're actually doing any development.

 

[spacecadet610]

I took advantage of the 1-time ADC discount several years ago. Like someone said before, maximize it because you'll only get 1 chance to use. Honestly, after taxes I really didn't save all that much more than through some other methods. I did, however, get the new Mac OS when it came out within the following year.

 

[Peace]

ADC discounts aren't anywhere near as good as they were a few years ago. In 2005 I could get a $500 discount on a nice Mac Pro/PowerMac G5. Now it's down to $200.

I think Apple is trying to weed out folks that get ADC just for discounts. They want real devs.

 

[ihabime]

If you don't mind an older model, the refurb store has 17" 2.4 and 2.5 ghz MBPs for around $1900 right now.