Is a Premium Reseller an Apple Store?

[SXR]

Hey there, my dear MacRumor friends

I live in the Netherlands and as you know, we don't have an APPLE ( i mean real APPLE ) Store here. Nothing will the logo , just some stores called A-Mac and stuff like that. Those are called "Premium Resellers". Very well, they may have a different name but they look identical inside. They have all the Macbooks layed out on the wooden tables and stuff , you can take them for a spin ect.
I'm not sure about the Genius bar , though.

Would you recommend these stores over the Apple Online Store to buy stuff? Do you have expierence with Premium Resellers in the US or other countrys?

 

[119576]

The Premium Resellers usually make a small profit on everything they sell, and are thus slightly more expensive than buying directly from Apple.

We have a few in my town. The only thing I've ever bought is a MiniDVI -> DVI adapter, and it cost me £4 more than buying from Apple. (£18 as opposed to £14)

 

[SXR]

The Premium Resellers usually make a small profit on everything they sell, and are thus slightly more expensive than buying directly from Apple.

We have a few in my town. The only thing I've ever bought is a MiniDVI -> DVI adapter, and it cost me £4 more than buying from Apple. (£18 as opposed to £14)

Thanks.

But do you think they offer the same level of service and does Apple keep an eye on them regarding stuff like that ?

Also , its sometimes cheaper to buy Apple stuff from an online store like Pixmania than directly from Apple.

iPod Nano : 134 euro + 5 euro shipping as apposed to 149 from apple.

 

[velocityg4]

Well I do not know how things differ in the Netherlands but in the US Apple is quite strict about the pricing of their branded products so there really should not be much or any difference there. Now there is probably a price hike on third party peripherals, this is where they make their money the computer itself does very little for profit.

These places are where you can find people who know a lot about Apple's if their focus is on Apple. Ask the tech person questions, usually the sales guys are not up to speed like any other tech store.

As far as my opinion goes, go to one of those stores to buy Apple branded products only. If you are getting any non-apple displays or third party peripherals like software, printers, routers, memory or hard drives go online and find a cheap online reseller. Retail stores will really overcharge you on RAM, Hard Drives, DVD Drives, Media, and Flash drives by two times as much or more.

 

[SXR]

Well I do not know how things differ in the Netherlands but in the US Apple is quite strict about the pricing of their branded products so there really should not be much or any difference there. Now there is probably a price hike on third party peripherals, this is where they make their money the computer itself does very little for profit.

These places are where you can find people who know a lot about Apple's if their focus is on Apple. Ask the tech person questions, usually the sales guys are not up to speed like any other tech store.

As far as my opinion goes, go to one of those stores to buy Apple branded products only. If you are getting any non-apple displays or third party peripherals like software, printers, routers, memory or hard drives go online and find a cheap online reseller. Retail stores will really overcharge you on RAM, Hard Drives, DVD Drives, Media, and Flash drives by two times as much or more.

Thanks for the detailed reply. The only reason i was looking to buy at an "Apple Store" is when I get a faulty MacBook or something , it looks much easier to bring it to a physical store rather than the Online Store.

 

[teleromeo]

I went to the local premium store here and they wanted me to charge a few euro's to get a power adapter send in since I didn't buy it over there. The shop was just open since a couple of weeks ...
If they charge more than apple for the same product I'll buy online.

 

[SXR]

For example , maybe they charge 5 to 7 euro more. But apple charges that for shipping costs at the Apple Online Store.

 

[teleromeo]

well, I was claiming a warranty ...

 

[SXR]

Too much negative votes