Macbook Pro - US and AUS

[vikas027]

Dear All,

I am planning to buy a beast - Macbook Pro 15" Retina, 2.6GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, 16 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD.

I searched the same config on the US site (http://store.apple.com/us) and Australian site (http://store.apple.com/au) too. The product ID of US site is ME294LL and of Australia site is ME294X.

Are there any differences between the two products ? Needless to say the one in US is $640 cheaper than the Australian mac.

I have read a lot about the new Intel chips, but I guess it is a long wait. Any recent news about the new Mac release ?

Regards,
Vikas

 

[Nermal]

The only difference is that the charger won't have a "normal" (3112) plug so you'll need an adapter.

Note that the US prices don't include tax, which makes up for some of the discrepancy.

 

[Madonepro]

Good luck with that, there is no 2.6 version, only a 2.5 and 2.8.

Pleased actually, otherwise my new rMBP would be superseded by two models.

You will find the US price is without sales tax, whereas the Australian version includes GST

 

[11fajado]

The difference between the US and AU rMBPs is definitely not $600+.

Not sure why everyone always forgets that the sticker price is not indicative of what you will actually pay at checkout.

The so called 'Apple Tax' that people have been complaining about in Australia is just about a myth now.

Let's say you were to buy the USD $2,499 rMBP in New York. Your total price will be USD $2,720.78 which is roughly AUD $2902.97.

The same laptop in AU will set you back AUD $2,999.00. AND through the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) you can claim back AUD $273.00 thus bringing down the price of your item to AUD $2,726.00 or USD $2,554.18.

Unless you buy your laptop in let's say Oregon for example, where there is no sales tax, you'll come out ahead by a bit.

But please, for the love of god, this whole 'Apple Tax' is a thing of the past now. Please, just buy it in Australia.

 

[Madonepro]

The difference between the US and AU rMBPs is definitely not $600+.

Not sure why everyone always forgets that the sticker price is not indicative of what you will actually pay at checkout.

The so called 'Apple Tax' that people have been complaining about in Australia is just about a myth now.

Let's say you were to buy the USD $2,499 rMBP in New York. Your total price will be USD $2,720.78 which is roughly AUD $2902.97.

The same laptop in AU will set you back AUD $2,999.00. AND through the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) you can claim back AUD $273.00 thus bringing down the price of your item to AUD $2,726.00 or USD $2,554.18.

Unless you buy your laptop in let's say Oregon for example, where there is no sales tax, you'll come out ahead by a bit.

But please, for the love of god, this whole 'Apple Tax' is a thing of the past now. Please, just buy it in Australia.

Bear in mind, if he's in the US there is the little matter of a flight to Oz!

 

[Nermal]

AND through the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) you can claim back AUD $273.00 thus bringing down the price of your item to AUD $2,726.00 or USD $2,554.18.

Presumably he lives in Australia and therefore wouldn't be eligible for the GST rebate. I can't imagine that he'd even consider paying the higher Australian price if he doesn't live there.

But now that I've looked at the figures, I have no idea where that $640 came from!

 

[vikas027]

The difference between the US and AU rMBPs is definitely not $600+.

Not sure why everyone always forgets that the sticker price is not indicative of what you will actually pay at checkout.

The so called 'Apple Tax' that people have been complaining about in Australia is just about a myth now.

Let's say you were to buy the USD $2,499 rMBP in New York. Your total price will be USD $2,720.78 which is roughly AUD $2902.97.

The same laptop in AU will set you back AUD $2,999.00. AND through the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) you can claim back AUD $273.00 thus bringing down the price of your item to AUD $2,726.00 or USD $2,554.18.

Unless you buy your laptop in let's say Oregon for example, where there is no sales tax, you'll come out ahead by a bit.

But please, for the love of god, this whole 'Apple Tax' is a thing of the past now. Please, just buy it in Australia.

Thanks for the detailed explanation. Well I didn't knew that AU prices are inclusive of GST and US prices are without tax.

 

[vikas027]

Good luck with that, there is no 2.6 version, only a 2.5 and 2.8.

Pleased actually, otherwise my new rMBP would be superseded by two models.

You will find the US price is without sales tax, whereas the Australian version includes GST

Yes, you are right. Apple has released the new models yesterday. I just checked now, the latest model is 2.8GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 4.0GHz

I had a chat with Apple today, the new model is with new Intel processors (Not Broadwell though).

 

[vikas027]

Bought it !!

Hello All,

Thanks for your time and valuable comments.

I just ordered my first Macbook today, can't wait to get my hands on it

[B]Macbook Pro w/ Retina 15"[/B]
Processor: 2.8GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 4.0GHz
Storage: 1TB PCIe-based Flash Storage
Keyboard and Documentation: Backlit Keyboard (English)

EXTRAS
Apple Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet Adapter
AppleCare Protection Plan