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Apple Increases HomePod Mini Price in Several European Countries
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Completely agree, I’m not sure my next computer will be a Mac, it’s not like we can buy a base model and later upgrade RAM and storage anymore. I’ve used macs since upgrading from an Amiga and don’t want to switch but can’t afford £1.5K for a computer or £600 for a pair of speakers.
You still see it on the invoice though. Also tax is always the same across the country so everyone knows there is 19% tax included. It drives me bonkers when I am in the US and I see the food menu and have to think „oh this does not include tax or tip yet“ and boom you are suddenly looking at like double the price (exaggerated) when you pay
Keep pushing up your loyal customers Apple... this is the right way for sure.
But the UK prices include tax/VAT whereas the US prices don’t, right?
Also another fact, VAT is now what, 20%? Here in CA the sales tax is around 9.5% so does that mean the government in the UK/EU is more greedy than here in the US??
Apples obsession with the Tik tok generation that can’t even afford half this stuff is going to cost them eventually.
The ridiculous price rises are insane, yes we’ve had small increases many times before the size of them this time are just disgusting.
£150 increase on iPhones.
£250 on MacBook Pro
£150 on imac
I’ve used every single iPhone but if this continues I’ll go elsewhere because the high price doesn’t equal quality anymore.
The ridiculous price rises are insane, yes we’ve had small increases many times before the size of them this time are just disgusting.
£150 increase on iPhones.
£250 on MacBook Pro
£150 on imac
I’ve used every single iPhone but if this continues I’ll go elsewhere because the high price doesn’t equal quality anymore.
I don't care at all.
I buy in this price range when I need something. And what I recognize as valuable, I do not need cheaper than it has recognizable value for me. And of course I'm happy when something is inexpensive. Whether something is reasonable in price, I can rarely judge, because often I know little of the background for prices.
If the economic power of a country dwindles, this will have an impact. Inflation also comes when something is out of balance. War costs our money, a single person instigated it. So why unload the powerlessness on Apple? Does this have anything to do with reason?
4 times more expensive eggs in SF are really annoying, but the price increase has a sad reason there, which hopefully will be cured soon.
I'm not upset that food is getting more expensive, it's just the way it is. Do I like it? Of course not, but I don't refuse to eat. And don't buy cheap food or cheap Android. I see all the people racing with their cars, although they know that driving a little slower saves up to 30% of expensive gasoline. So: lot of people are just whining without really being in need.
Slow down for a month and you can buy more things. You have the freedom to rant in the choir, but you also have the freedom to be smart about change, it's just more fun.
For most of us it only gets difficult when you no longer have the Chinese working for us, and everything has to be produced at e.g. real American or European wages.
I buy in this price range when I need something. And what I recognize as valuable, I do not need cheaper than it has recognizable value for me. And of course I'm happy when something is inexpensive. Whether something is reasonable in price, I can rarely judge, because often I know little of the background for prices.
If the economic power of a country dwindles, this will have an impact. Inflation also comes when something is out of balance. War costs our money, a single person instigated it. So why unload the powerlessness on Apple? Does this have anything to do with reason?
4 times more expensive eggs in SF are really annoying, but the price increase has a sad reason there, which hopefully will be cured soon.
I'm not upset that food is getting more expensive, it's just the way it is. Do I like it? Of course not, but I don't refuse to eat. And don't buy cheap food or cheap Android. I see all the people racing with their cars, although they know that driving a little slower saves up to 30% of expensive gasoline. So: lot of people are just whining without really being in need.
Slow down for a month and you can buy more things. You have the freedom to rant in the choir, but you also have the freedom to be smart about change, it's just more fun.
For most of us it only gets difficult when you no longer have the Chinese working for us, and everything has to be produced at e.g. real American or European wages.
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I don't think many people here are shocked to learn that VAT is a thing. The issue is with people who seem to think advertised U.S. prices include a VAT equivalent (or sales tax) which they do not.
As I commented in another post, comparing a price with VAT against a price without sales tax is not a fair comparison. Without VAT, the UK price is £82 which is equal to around $101 USD. The U.S. price without sales tax is $99. Excluding VAT and sales tax, the prices are nearly the same.
I usually get a new one every two years and pass down my old one to my son. This year I passed down my old 12 Pro to him and I started using his old XR while I decided which model of 14 I was going to buy. Almost 3 month later and, other than the camera not being as great, I don't really notice much of a difference for the things I use my phone for so I'm not sure I'll bother upgrading at all. To me the new iPhone is certainly not worth the minimum £849 minus whatever I could get back for the XR. I'm probably not alone in thinking like this.
everyone here talking about the mini homepod price increase but - wow - that iMac price increase in the UK, an extra £150 for a product line introduced September 2021 !
Inflation, but that will drop, gas and oil prices are estimated to drop, Putin and Ukraine will stop, eventually. So the economy ‘should’ get back to normal. But that’s no guarantee Apple will reduce its prices after increasing them.
However I do predict Apples sales will drop, that may affect them if they aren’t able to announce record profits. They may not be able to increase prices as much if that’s the case.
However I do predict Apples sales will drop, that may affect them if they aren’t able to announce record profits. They may not be able to increase prices as much if that’s the case.
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The other way to see it is just companies trying hide how much you're really paying …
Like they do when advertising a cheap price and then adding all kinds of hidden surcharges and fees. Yuck.
It's like asking the customer to pay extra to cover your rent. "See, I'm not charging you more, my landlord is."
Why do I want to see that itemized separately. It's just one cost of doing business, calculate your margins accordingly.
I also don't think it doesn't make difference for competition. Customers go where they pay the least. That's still true with VAT. Literally the only difference is they don't have to do the math (e.g. to see if a higher price with lower VAT ends up cheaper).
(Not that I personally think a tax race to the bottom is a good thing, but that's an entirely different debate.)
To be honest that was partly the reason Apple went for its own chips, it knew it could integrate the RAM so you had to buy what you want and need from them at time of purchase. And same with the SSD although they’ve been soldering that down for a while now. They kind have you over a barrel at point of purchase.
Apple pays probably a few dollars, like 10 or 20 for it’s memory or SSD chips it buys them in so much bulk. But they massively increase the cost for the consumer price.
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£1,399 iMac starting price for the boring colours/2 port/single fan version is... sad 
Agreed. HomePod is never truly $99. I have to add tax on checkout so when it hits my card it’s higher than $99.
Apple are only covering the expenses of activating the temperature sensor!
I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I just configured myself a Lenovo T14 Gen 3 with 16GB RAM and 1TB SSD, which also comes with three year support, for less than the price of an entry level M2 Air.
Are these two really comparable? Probably not and both will have their own pros and cons, but once I factor in the SSD upgrades that I do need the MacBooks really become expensive.
Advertised European prices include sales tax, which US prices do not.Foreign exchange rates are not interest rates, just FYI.
It could be (a) inflation, (b) foreign exchange rates, or (c) something else.
Like you said they have pros and cons. The screen is probably better on the Mac and things like that. I take the whole package. And to some people it doesn’t matter! Lenovos have been good systems to me in the past and hope it’s a good one for you! A lot of the time people compare these devices and the Windows laptop has a 1080p display or something like that. So I look at the overall package.