Well, see, we have 50 of these different states, and they each charge a different amount of sales tax, and in some cases a county / municipal sales tax depending on where you buy it. The sales taxes go to the state and local governments, not the feds. There is no universal or federal tax. So there is no simple way you can quote an absolute number. But everyone here knows that, because all prices for everything are listed before sales tax is added. Not a problem, everyone gets it.
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Apple Announces International iPad Availability for May 28th
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Well, see, we have 50 of these different states, and they each charge a different amount of sales tax, and in some cases a county / municipal sales tax depending on where you buy it. The sales taxes go to the state and local governments, not the feds. There is no universal or federal tax. So there is no simple way you can quote an absolute number. But everyone here knows that, because all prices for everything are listed before sales tax is added. Not a problem, everyone gets it.
Official prices in Euro
16GB WiFi-only €479
32GB WiFi-only €579
64GB WiFi-only €679
16GB WiFi+3G €579
32GB WiFi+3G €679
64GB WiFi+3G €779
Note: Price info from Apple (including 19% VAT).
16GB WiFi-only €479
32GB WiFi-only €579
64GB WiFi-only €679
16GB WiFi+3G €579
32GB WiFi+3G €679
64GB WiFi+3G €779
Note: Price info from Apple (including 19% VAT).
Where do you get this ? PR from Italy is different!
http://www.apple.com/it/pr/library/2010/05/07ipad.html
Wow, terrible data pricing from Orange - no unlimited 3G? Even AT&T can manage it...
So the question begs to be asked?
Did Apple really ramp up for this production need? and if they did and are spinning these out faster - can we be sure of quality control?
Will this stop the shortages here in the US? My local Apple stores cannot keep the wifi nor the 3g models in stock. everytime I call or go, they are sold out and am told to order online if I really want one. I like to buy locally to help my local economy, plus that means I can usually get and return the same day if there is a problem (not that I ever had any problems with an Apple product - one of the few products that every thing I buy from the company is flawless, but we are talking about electronics - so there is always a chance).
Did Apple really ramp up for this production need? and if they did and are spinning these out faster - can we be sure of quality control?
Will this stop the shortages here in the US? My local Apple stores cannot keep the wifi nor the 3g models in stock. everytime I call or go, they are sold out and am told to order online if I really want one. I like to buy locally to help my local economy, plus that means I can usually get and return the same day if there is a problem (not that I ever had any problems with an Apple product - one of the few products that every thing I buy from the company is flawless, but we are talking about electronics - so there is always a chance).
You really don't know much about international business do you?
Premium products are not priced on a "cost plus" model - they are priced at the price the manufacturer thinks that market will stand.
I don't see a £429 price killing-off the netbook market in the UK
I'd thought of getting one as a toy, but at this price the
magical:unbelievable price ratio just isn't good enough.
With my iPhone when I do heavy browsing I use 500MB** in 3 weeks.
If this can help to understand better what you need.
But have to be considered that iPad has an higher data consuming compare to an iPhone.
**on top-up £15 with O2 that claims to gives unlimited data and then I found out that it wasn't since I got a warning text of 50MB remaining out of my 500MB.
People don't necessarily pay sales tax in Europe either, it depends. If you run a business you're usually allowed to deduct the sales tax, which is why most B2B vendors quote prices without tax. Vendors who deal with both groups usually quote two prices, including and excluding sales tax. I buy computers, software etc to use in my firm so I don't have to pay the 25% VAT we have here in the world capital of taxation, Sweden. Oh right, Denmark is #1 in taxes since 2008.
are computers/mobile devices not covered under nafta?
anyway, the dollar is at parity, and for 2 years iphone pricing has been the same as the US, as well as iPod touches. its just more money grabbing by apple.
I'm not blaming Apple for taxes, nor am I addicted to government services, thanks. As much as you say countries bury taxes in prices, it's obvious that companies equally get an advantage by showing a price that's less than what most people pay. Real estate developers that run an advert showing blocks from $300,000 and where the average tax inclusive price is $400,000 generate an artificially level of higher demand.
I'll say that I think it's impossible for companies to deal with the mix of sales taxes levied by each of the states. When you've also lived somewhere that embeds the price you'll actually pay, you'll appreciate that consumers are better served by one national tax rate and it quoted all inclusive.
I should add that I'm completely in favor of transparency too... the level of tax paid to government should always be clear and transparent to the consumer. That is the normal model and essential to keep pressure on tax rates.
that is low. i got mine in october too.
Sent 1.0GB, received 5.2GB. And I get the feeling i resdet this in december when I went abroad on a trip to keep an eye on my usage.
The kindle took years to show up overseas, Nokia doesn't do worldwide product launches for alot of their phones which is why some have to be obtained on the grey market , Car Companies don't offer certain models worldwide , Sony releases alot of things in japan first and does a US launch later.
People seem to have got their maths wrong, based on current exchange rates, the 16Gb iPad in the UK is ONLY £25 more expensive than the US version
UK prices include tax and the US ones dont.
If you take off VAT from the UK price you have £365 which when converted to $ at current exchange rates is $536.
Thats only £25 more which considering it has to be imported isnt terrible. Id have preferred an exact rate conversion but exchange rates are a bit volatile in the UK today!
UK prices include tax and the US ones dont.
If you take off VAT from the UK price you have £365 which when converted to $ at current exchange rates is $536.
Thats only £25 more which considering it has to be imported isnt terrible. Id have preferred an exact rate conversion but exchange rates are a bit volatile in the UK today!
Umm, you're blaming the wrong entitiy here. You need to take the tax off the UK price before doing the converstion to find out the price APPLE charges you. The VAT (which is what you're bitching about) is charged by the government so if you're not happy about paying 7% more (in your above example) go complain to them not to Apple.
If you want to compare prices you need to either take the VAT off the UK price or add VAT onto the US price. Even then it's not a straight apples-to-apples (heh) test because it costs more to do business in the UK than the US so there's a few more percent on top as well.
In other words, no it's not bollocks, it's just the way taxation and costs work in different economies.
Exactly. I use a lot of 3G data on my iPhone, and the iPad will probably suck down even more.
Fair enough. I guess everyone knows their local number and just adds it in when they're thinking about buying something.
Its a shame really because, here at least, i find Orange have much better 3G coverage than the other networks. Maybe that's why they think they can get us to pay so much. I expect O2 and Vodafone will be cheaper. Overall i'd expect 3 to be cheapest (maybe not an iPad specific plan though), but using them has its own set of issues.