New iMac pricing in Europe a crime

[Olgierd T.]

Have anyone noticed new iMac pricing in Europe in comparance to US.

After conversion iMac in Germany is about 450$ more expensive than in US.

With US Dolar so cheap in Europe we should get something different than 1199 in $ = 1199 €.

Why? Why people in Europe should pay more or rather that much more?

This extends even Adobe pricings diferencies.

You can buy iPod with this difference.

Same with iTunes policy that you can't buy in iTunes store with credit card from other country than the shop is.

Why!?

 

[lauph]

er... take a look at Hong Kong online store, it is cheaper than US, so it will be cheaper and cheaper than Europe

 

[iW00t]

Have anyone noticed new iMac pricing in Europe in comparance to US.

After conversion iMac in Germany is about 450$ more expensive than in US.

With US Dolar so cheap in Europe we should get something different than 1199 in $ = 1199 €.

Why? Why people in Europe should pay more or rather that much more?

This extends even Adobe pricings diferencies.

You can buy iPod with this difference.

Same with iTunes policy that you can't buy in iTunes store with credit card from other country than the shop is.

Why!?

Did you take into account the fact that listed prices in european stores are tax inclusive, and prices listed in the states do not include tax (until you try to check out the item)?

 

[lauph]

oops i take that back, BUT look at the MacBook and MacBook Pro sections, they are cheaper in HK

 

[bobobo]

Your subsisdizing the Americans to live a care free life.

It is like this with all your American products. Hong Kong gets it cheap because America rewards its slaves by offering the same price to it plus there is no sales tax.

 

[Olgierd T.]

Did you take into account the fact that listed prices in european stores are tax inclusive, and prices listed in the states do not include tax (until you try to check out the item)?

Yes I did. Excluding European Tax it still goes for 200$ more.

But still if you are buying for home use you will add to base price form 18% to 25% depending on country.

In US tax is much lower and if I would go to US buy Mac and get tax refund at border...

Still unfair.

[edit]

Still buying iMac in US with transport to Europe and Taxes can be cheeper.

 

[G4DP]

Apple thinks people will pay the extra cost, so they charge it. Even before VAT is added the USA models are cheaper, even when you include for example 7% sales tax.

Apple and most electronics companies considers Europe a cash cow, especially the UK. It's always been like it and will continue to be that way.

 

[mikeheenan]

Well Apple certainly didn't invent the VAT tax did they? So you really can't blame them for that. You guys over there have one up on us here with the dollar to Euro conversion in that it's probably much cheaper for you to fly to NY, buy your mac, and bring it back home. I dont know if customs would tax you or not?

 

[Olgierd T.]

Still 200$ difference.

 

[KurtangleTN]

You might want to start blaming all companies, It's not just Apple that releases products 10-20% more in Europe.

 

[mpw]

I took the new iMac 20" as an example and as you can see this shows that the French pay 11.4% more than the US. Once you take into account the extra cost of doing business in France plus exchange rates etc. 11.4% isn't that big of a deal. Maybe not an iMac, but I bet you could find examples of products within France that have a price discrepancy greater than 11.4% between cities or even within a city between stores. That's business.

Store    £/$/€       $           %higher than $ equivalent 
UK        807.66      738.82     9.3

US       1499.00     1499.00     0.0  

France   1211.54     1087.49     11.4

 

[Umbongo]

Because the global economy doesn't work like that. Aside form the tax issues of different online stores, US items, especially electronics are rarely priced based on their US cost and the exchange rate. The German economy isn't exactly the same as the US, nor is it based purely off the dollar. It has been this way forever, if you are only noticing it now, it's because you have easy access to compare such things

 

[kman34]

Sounds like a great time to take a vacation to the States...come on over and spend your Euros buying US goods on the cheap!

 

[libertyterran]

In US tax is much lower and if I would go to US buy Mac and get tax refund at border...

Still unfair.

[edit]

Still buying iMac in US with transport to Europe and Taxes can be cheeper.

There is no GST/VAT refund in the US, mate

 

[balahir]

I always buy my iPods in the US instead of in Sweden. I paid SEK1900 incl tax for my new 8GB nano (product red) in NY instead of SEK2500 in Sweden, a difference of almost $90...

The new mini is also easily transported home, with a price differrence of approx $ 160 (if I include a 10% tax in US)...

 

[herrmill]

Try China

You should try China. I live in Shanghai 40km from the factory where these come from & always have to deal with higher prices as well as 3-5 month delay in seeing new product arrive in the local stores.

I typically purchase as much as I can in the States & bring back with me, but hiding a new 24" iMac from China Customs might be somewhat hard for me get away with!

 

[Adokimus]

Your subsisdizing the Americans to live a care free life.

It is like this with all your American products. Hong Kong gets it cheap because America rewards its slaves by offering the same price to it plus there is no sales tax.

(For the record, it's "you're" and "subsidizing." I realize English is probably your second language, but really, what's the point of oppressing people if you don't also correct their spelling. My favorite part is losing good American jobs to cheap foreign labor, where governments don't treat their employees with any human respect or decency, and then being the object of all criticism. But, I digress. Ahhh, the care free life.)

 

[mustang_dvs]

Your subsisdizing the Americans to live a care free life.

It is like this with all your American products. Hong Kong gets it cheap because America rewards its slaves by offering the same price to it plus there is no sales tax.

Yep, totally care-free. (Crumbling infrastructure; exponentially growing divide between ultra-rich and poor, while middle class slides below the poverty level; political leaders who trample upon our basic rights and a mainstream media that is complicit in selling the white-washed lies; a teetering economy buttressed by junk mortgages -- 7+ million middle class Americans are about to lose their homes; the worst health care in the industrialized world; toxic substances introduced into our food and water supplies while the government proclaims in NewSpeak that we have most ideal environment ever...)

As for HK, blame that on the Bushes -- who cozied up to Beijing even while it was literally crushing its citizens under tank treads and haven't even considered revoking MFN status for fear of further enlarging our gigantic trade deficit.

 

[MacbookSwitcher]

Welcome to the wonderful world of European socialism!

You can't have your "free" healthcare and free lifetime paychecks for bums and criminals, without paying a price (in this case, high tariffs on evil American products)

 

[trule]

Still 200$ difference.

In Germany you can get Mac's for about 50€ less if you buy via a 3rd party online retailer. So the difference is even a little bit less (enough not to make it worth your while to fly to USA to buy one...).

Apple gets away with it, take the 320G to 1000G disk upgrade, costs around 500€ but you can get the raw 1000G disk for 300€ and then sell the 320G disk for perhaps 60€...so Apple makes a good 240€ extra on the factory disk upgrade.

Same for memory.


Basically with Apple there is no real competition, so you get screwed...all you can do is control how much they screw you

 

[mpw]

Welcome to the wonderful world of European socialism!

You can't have your "free" healthcare and free lifetime paychecks for bums and criminals, without paying a price (in this case, high tariffs on evil American products)

EU import tariff on a notebook or desktop system is 0%

(For the record, it's "you're" and "subsidizing." I realize English is probably your second language...

I realise English isn't your language, but for the record it's "subsidising" and "realise"

 

[rodrigoK]

After conversion, the Apple products in Brazil is +/-100% more expensive than US.

 

[aliquis-]

Longer shipping, import duties, better warrantys, we are europeans so everyone wanna screw us (due to our looks I guess ..) and finally higher taxes.

 

[Umbongo]

Longer shipping, import duties, better warrantys, we are europeans so everyone wanna screw us (due to our looks I guess ..) and finally higher taxes.

Don't forget localization costs for hardware and OSX, staffing costs, other logistics etc. The list goes on and on.

 

[megfilmworks]

No matter the current market value..I agree with Apple; 1 Euro = 1 US
Exchange rates? Bah Humbug!