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BTO from California?

mreg376

mreg376

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Mar 23, 2008
1,235
419
Brooklyn, NY
So does the fact that my build-to-order 27" iMac, ordered on 5/16 and "shipped" on 5/18, and that began its 6-day UPS Ground journey from Sunnyvale, California mean that the machine was built/assembled in California? Just curious...
 
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Let us know when you receive it. As far as we know, Apple still produces its iMacs in China and will continue doing so.
 
Yes, that's what surprised me. I ordered the machine (BTO with i7 and 1 TB SSD) on the 16th, and it was in UPS's hands in California on the 18th. Maybe they sent it from a store that had one in stock? Do they do that?
 
If it's a build to order, it's usually assembled in China and shipped from there. However common BTO options may be regularly produced by Apple's suppliers and sent to delivery warehouses around the world to fulfill customer orders as they are received. However, this is just an educated guess – I don't think anyone knows for certain except Apple and those within the supply chain.
 
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That sounds likely. While of course there's no way to know for sure, I can think of no other explanation for a BTO taking just 48 hours from the time of the order to UPS departure from Sunnyvale, CA.
 
mreg376 said:
That sounds likely. While of course there's no way to know for sure, I can think of no other explanation for a BTO taking just 48 hours from the time of the order to UPS departure from Sunnyvale, CA.
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The regular IMac's are currently being manufactured in California thus the reason it shipped in 2 days from Sunnyvale. If it was built in China it would have originated from there. The IMac Pro is built in China.
 
My BTO also shipped from Sunnyvale, California. I remember reading a couple of years ago that the 27-inch iMacs were built in Texas while the trashcan MP's were assembled in Tennessee.

These machines could very well be built in China then shipped to the US with Sunnyvale being the port of entry. I know Apple ships everything out of China by means of air travel for security reasons.
 
But I don't think I could have ordered the machine on 5/16, and it was built in China and shipped to Sunnyvale and then be shipped by UPS from Sunnyvale, all by 5/18. Can't see how that's possible. Looks like it was likely built in California, as was #TyWahn's above. Interesting. I'll report back on what the box says when mine is delivered.
 
For those of you who didn't know, Sunnyvale is a stone's throw from Cupertino (where Apple's campus is). Neighboring city.
 
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mreg376 said:
That's news. Do you have a source for that?
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Yes as I have ordered IMac's in the past and called into customer care and specifically asked where the machine is being built/shipped from. You can do the same and they will confirm what I said about it being built in the US. The fact that your IMac has shipped from Sunnyvale confirms it was built in Cupertino, California. If they are built in China it would have shipped directly from China to you. Another tip is when you call customer care you can get the shipping expedited to overnight and that shipping is only offered if the machine originates from the US. Too late in your case.
 
floridaman said:
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Yes as I have ordered IMac's in the past and called into customer care and specifically asked where the machine is being built/shipped from. You can do the same and they will confirm what I said about it being built in the US. The fact that your IMac has shipped from Sunnyvale confirms it was built in Cupertino, California. If they are built in China it would have shipped directly from China to you. Another tip is when you call customer care you can get the shipping expedited to overnight and that shipping is only offered if the machine originates from the US. Too late in your case.
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I could have changed it to overnight shipping?? Now THAT would have been nice to know. In fact they should do that automatically for US BTO's.
 
mreg376 said:
I could have changed it to overnight shipping?? Now THAT would have been nice to know. In fact they should do that automatically for US BTO's.
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I have seen where this option is available when placing the order but usually you have to call to have the shipping method changed.
 
06tb06 said:
My BTO also shipped from Sunnyvale, California. I remember reading a couple of years ago that the 27-inch iMacs were built in Texas while the trashcan MP's were assembled in Tennessee.

These machines could very well be built in China then shipped to the US with Sunnyvale being the port of entry. I know Apple ships everything out of China by means of air travel for security reasons.
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The Mac Pro (Late 2013) is assembled in Austin, TX by Flextronics.
The iMac, mostly 27" models, can be assembled in Sunnyvale, CA by Quanta Computer. They have an office on Benecia Ave.
 
Received my iMac. "Assembled in California." The machine is beautiful (especially so for me coming from a 2007 24"). I know about the bezel controversy, but anyone who buys this iMac with this unbelievable 5K Retina screen and focuses on the bezels has issues... :)
 
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mreg376 said:
That's news. Do you have a source for that?
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It was news when they first started doing this—I believe late 2012? I got the late 2012 in early 2013 at work and it was made in USA with the bottom stamp. Was also BTO. Never checked my mid-2017 5K BTO at work last year but I started a new job this year so I can’t check as I have a MBP now.
 
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