Reseller Or AppleStore For Best Discount?

[BruceEBonus]

Hello from an incredibly new Mac user. So new in fact - I dont even have one yet (ahem). Im waiting to get the 24" iMac when Leopard is released next month. As a Scotsman and longterm PC user - spending money doesnt come easy - so I have to establish the best deal. Obviously. And its looking good. Apple have their "have a free £85 back" offer for students AND student discount too of course. This is most handy because I shall be buying both an iPod 160gb Classic and the above iMac together next month for my Uni Student daughter. This means potentially I can acheive simulataneously:
1) A brand new software release
2) A £85 Refund
3) NUS Discount
So I couldnt have picked a better time. So whats the beef?.
Well - I went into my local Reseller - they said
"Yes, we do discount for students ... 6% and upwards... depending on what and how much you are going to spend"
The nearest AppleStore replied:
"Yes we do discount for Students - Ill look at our Apple Discount Bible"
Right - well here's the dilemma.
Applestore Advantages as far as I can see:
AppleStores do what sounds like incredibly good discounts for Students
Although the £85 discount is a one-off - its not exactly dismissable as paltry - its very generous and Resellers cant match it
Applestore disadvantages:
It seems to me that they simply cannot display the flexibility in `extras' chucked in with purchases and always run to their `Bibles to find out what they can or cannot give off. So that means I will win with the discount/cashback but could fail with no freebies being thrown in/discounted?.
Reseller Advantages and Disadvantages:
It seems their discounts could start lower than Apple Officials but having less corporate dictate-does this mean they would match their AppleStore rivals?.
Due to the above-does this mean they can throw in extras to match the Cashback deal offered by the Applestores (iPod discount offer)
My local Reseller offers 6 months interest free too .. would this also be available at the AppleStore?

As things stand - its seems AppleStore is showing the best offers for my student daughter - at least til the end of October. Just in time for Leopard.
But if I was to go into my Reseller and ask him to match or beat the AppleStore - is it very likely?. Can they get round things by chucking in iWork08/Parallels 3, etc?.

So - in you lot's experience-if you are spending the best part of one and a half grand .. or maybe more if I go for a laptop too .. that its better to go Official or Independent?.

And can both / one of them bend on cheap/free extended AppleCare?.

You'd never guess I originally came from North of the Border would ye?. Aye!.

And on that note - here's a joke f'yuz.

Question: How Do You Stop A Scotsman Being Seasick?.
Answer: Tell Him To Place A One Pound Coin Between His Teeth And Lean Over The Side Of The Ship!.

And on that bombshell, readers ... I shall await yer learned replies!

Bruce (Mc.Sporran) Turner

 

[xy14]

Hello from an incredibly new Mac user. So new in fact - I dont even have one yet (ahem). Im waiting to get the 24" iMac when Leopard is released next month. As a Scotsman and longterm PC user - spending money doesnt come easy - so I have to establish the best deal. Obviously. And its looking good. Apple have their "have a free £85 back" offer for students AND student discount too of course. This is most handy because I shall be buying both an iPod 160gb Classic and the above iMac together next month for my Uni Student daughter. This means potentially I can acheive simulataneously:
1) A brand new software release
2) A £85 Refund
3) NUS Discount
So I couldnt have picked a better time. So whats the beef?.
Well - I went into my local Reseller - they said
"Yes, we do discount for students ... 6% and upwards... depending on what and how much you are going to spend"
The nearest AppleStore replied:
"Yes we do discount for Students - Ill look at our Apple Discount Bible"
Right - well here's the dilemma.
Applestore Advantages as far as I can see:
AppleStores do what sounds like incredibly good discounts for Students
Although the £85 discount is a one-off - its not exactly dismissable as paltry - its very generous and Resellers cant match it
Applestore disadvantages:
It seems to me that they simply cannot display the flexibility in `extras' chucked in with purchases and always run to their `Bibles to find out what they can or cannot give off. So that means I will win with the discount/cashback but could fail with no freebies being thrown in/discounted?.
Reseller Advantages and Disadvantages:
It seems their discounts could start lower than Apple Officials but having less corporate dictate-does this mean they would match their AppleStore rivals?.
Due to the above-does this mean they can throw in extras to match the Cashback deal offered by the Applestores (iPod discount offer)
My local Reseller offers 6 months interest free too .. would this also be available at the AppleStore?

As things stand - its seems AppleStore is showing the best offers for my student daughter - at least til the end of October. Just in time for Leopard.
But if I was to go into my Reseller and ask him to match or beat the AppleStore - is it very likely?. Can they get round things by chucking in iWork08/Parallels 3, etc?.

So - in you lot's experience-if you are spending the best part of one and a half grand .. or maybe more if I go for a laptop too .. that its better to go Official or Independent?.

And can both / one of them bend on cheap/free extended AppleCare?.

You'd never guess I originally came from North of the Border would ye?. Aye!.

And on that note - here's a joke f'yuz.

Question: How Do You Stop A Scotsman Being Seasick?.
Answer: Tell Him To Place A One Pound Coin Between His Teeth And Lean Over The Side Of The Ship!.

And on that bombshell, readers ... I shall await yer learned replies!

Bruce (Mc.Sporran) Turner

Normally resellers don't offer student discounts because they have a certain price they need to sell it for (at least in the US).

The Apple store will be able to help set up everything for you, and they aren't necessarily strict about everything, you just have to learn to beg.

Like one time I was out of warranty and my power adapter started on fire, so I went to the store and they said I should have to pay $80. I later e-mailed sjobs@apple.com and told him that if I don't get a free adapter I would report the fire hazard to the better business bureau. The next day, I got a call from his secretary and they decided to make an exception.

 

[CanadaRAM]

Resellers make very little on Macs -- 3% - 7% margin. Depending on your country, Apple may or may not give them a reduction on education sales. So don't bet on getting hundreds worth of free software or anything. They just don't have it to give.

If your daughter buys though the HE store in the UK, she will also get a 3 year hardware warranty. You can add Applecare phone support to that for 69 pounds or so.

There is also a limit to how many machines she can buy on discount, and how often.

 

[anim8or]

The answer depends on where your daughter is going to college.

If her college is enrolled in the Higher Education Agreement then she will be eligible for a better student discount if she buys from the higher ed online store through her college's network.

The student discount on the everyday apple online store is good but with the HE agreement you get approx. an extra 5-10% off that.

You also get applecare for around £50 rather than the normal price when buying through the HE store.

I would think that you will pay the least when purchasing from here (although i dont know about any money back extras or anything else like that)

 

[ctsport1234]

Apple store is better overall but resellers usually have better return policies (e.g. no restocking fee) if you find something faulty on your new purchase e.g. dead pixels

 

[BruceEBonus]

Thanks very much to all replies I have receive back to this question. It appears that the best route for me then - is the APpleStore one. I can get the bigger discount/£85 rebate/Student Discount/extended warranty and Leopard from one outlet!. Nice. And to think that last year when the white 24" was £200 more .. I will now get it for near on £300 less and its a better spec. I cant believe that Apple are actually getting better value than PCs!. When you add up the cost of that flat screen hi res LCD to an equivalent PC .. no contest. Amazing. Cheers for that folks! What a nice bunch they are on here!.