Price drops of MacBook Pros

[jangozo]

Hi,

I want to ask how the MacBook Pro prices vary after each product release. Basically I'm looking to buy a new MacBook Pro 15" (non-retina) with lowest specs available but I'm wondering if I should wait a couple more months to see if the price will drop more as it gets older.

I've noticed that the price for the higher spec non-retina MBP stays the same but the processor has had an upgrade of 0.3 Ghz. Does Apple tend to keep the prices and just upgrade the HW you get for that price?

Thanks!

 

[Hellhammer]

Apple doesn't do price drops. Sometimes Apple may do a minor update and add a slightly faster CPU, but that's not worth the wait.

 

[jangozo]

Apple doesn't do price drops. Sometimes Apple may do a minor update and add a slightly faster CPU, but that's not worth the wait.

So considering the fact that rMBP is hard to HW upgrade, am I right in thinking that now is the best time to buy a 15" MBP that will last me for the next 4+ years?

Also a side question: Is the Apple US website, the cheapest place to buy a new MBP?

 

[Lindberg]

The 15" MBP will most likely not be updated until 2 quater 2013. So unless you can wait until then - buy now!

 

[r0k]

Hi,

I want to ask how the MacBook Pro prices vary after each product release. Basically I'm looking to buy a new MacBook Pro 15" (non-retina) with lowest specs available but I'm wondering if I should wait a couple more months to see if the price will drop more as it gets older.

I've noticed that the price for the higher spec non-retina MBP stays the same but the processor has had an upgrade of 0.3 Ghz. Does Apple tend to keep the prices and just upgrade the HW you get for that price?

Thanks!

Microcenter is selling the late 2011 15.4 inch hires MBP for $850 off what it was selling for last year. They are new in box. I just got one. So while Apple doesn't cut prices, they ship them to places like Microcenter and Frys and you should be able to get a deal on an older model that is still new in box.

There is another option and that is to buy from the Apple refurb store. Savings there can approach 15 percent. I got my MBP for $1600 new in box from MC while the same machine was being offered on Apple's refurb store for $1800.

I bought the machine from MC but I bought the AppleCare from Apple. If you're looking to save money on a MBP, you can save up to 30% like I did. Mine came with 4GB of RAM and the first thing I did was pop in 16GB. I expect to put in an SSD in early 2013 and this thing will scream! BTW my geekbench score ranges between 10,000 and 11,000 and my novabench is sits just below 1200.

 

[jangozo]

Thanks for the great advice everyone.

I'll just give you a few more details on me to see if you have any more tips . I'm currently in Bulgaria (EU) and going to be needing a new laptop around January. I have a friend in the US who I can order it for and he can ship it to me here.

Off topic: Prices of Apple products and laptops in particular are crazy high here. The equivalent of the one I'm looking at over here is 500 euro more.

 

[r0k]

Thanks for the great advice everyone.

I'll just give you a few more details on me to see if you have any more tips . I'm currently in Bulgaria (EU) and going to be needing a new laptop around January. I have a friend in the US who I can order it for and he can ship it to me here.

Off topic: Prices of Apple products and laptops in particular are crazy high here. The equivalent of the one I'm looking at over here is 500 euro more.

If your friend lives near a Microcenter or Frys, have them check for any deals before you consider having your friend order it for you. There are deals on Frys.com and Microcenter.com but the best deals are always in-store only.