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Some MacMinis ordered from Apple come straight from China

DHart

DHart

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 17, 2008
398
12
I got an email that the MacMini I ordered from Apple (i7 with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD) just shipped from Shenzen, China by FedEx, to arrive day after tomorrow.

Apparently, a MacMini i7 with 16GB of ram and a 512GB SSD is not in stock in any Apple warehouse in the USA and is made-to-order at the factory in China!

Perhaps Apple only keeps the more basic models in stock in most of the USA, except for 3rd party resellers.

B&H in NYC, has pre-ordered some high end MacMinis to have in stock.

I needed to buy directly from Apple because I turned in an old MacMini, and old MacBookAir, and two old iPads through their GiveBack program - resulting in Gift Cards only good directly with Apple. Otherwise, I probably would have ordered from B&H, who has the i7/16GB/512GB model in stock.

So... if you want a high end MacMini that Apple doesn't have in stock, and you want it quickly, try resellers like B&H.
 
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I looked at that exact configuration today and Apple has a delivery date of May 16 on it. How long was your delivery time?
 
DHart said:
Perhaps Apple only keeps the more basic models in stock in most of the USA, except for 3rd party resellers.
Click to expand...

This has always been the case for the computers. Base models listed on the website/store app, at an Apple Store. Want to upgrade anything, built to order and coming from China.

The Apple Stores work the same in that they keep limited supply on hand. When dips to a certain level, another shipment from China to the store. Costs Apple money to keep inventory at a warehouse, and can replenish supply relatively quickly, so they too build to order. Plus with ERP systems, they have a good idea on how many units move a week on average, so can plan for that.

My new Mac, bought April 1 at Apple Store, has a mid/late March build date (22nd if I recall correctly).
 
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richpjr said:
I looked at that exact configuration today and Apple has a delivery date of May 16 on it. How long was your delivery time?
Click to expand...

Ordered May 2nd. I paid $8 for a slightly quicker delivery. FedEx scheduled to deliver to me on May 8th. Pretty darn quick! I think the $8 I paid for quicker deliver really made a difference.

In recent months, we ordered a pair of high-end MacBookPros with 32GB of RAM and 512GB SSDs, and a pair of MacBookAirs 1.6GHz i5, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB SSDs - they were all in stock and ready to ship (free shipping and no sales tax) from B&H in NYC. B&H is my favorite place to buy Macs because they do stock higher-spec units, free shipping, and no tax! Oh, and there was a little bit of a discounted price at B&H as well. B&H is also a good source for Samsung T5 500GB and 1TB SSDs.

I will be using a Samsung T5 1TB SSD as my external image and music data drive. These Samsung T5s are really nice, fast drives. It is also set up to be a start-up disk (cloned to include OS and all apps), in case it should ever be needed for that.
 
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DHart said:
Ordered May 2nd. I paid $8 for a slightly quicker delivery. FedEx scheduled to deliver to me on May 8th. Pretty darn quick! I think the $8 I paid for quicker deliver really made a difference.

In recent months, we ordered a pair of high-end MacBookPros with 32GB of RAM and 512GB SSDs, and a pair of MacBookAirs 1.6GHz i5, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB SSDs - they were all in stock and ready to ship (free shipping and no sales tax) from B&H in NYC. B&H is my favorite place to buy Macs because they do stock higher-spec units, free shipping, and no tax! Oh, and there was a little bit of a discounted price at B&H as well. B&H is also a good source for Samsung T5 500GB and 1TB SSDs.

I will be using a Samsung T5 1TB SSD as my external image and music data drive. These Samsung T5s are really nice, fast drives. It is also set up to be a start-up disk (cloned to include OS and all apps), in case it should ever be needed for that.
Click to expand...

Sadly, the days of not collecting sales tax by B&H seem to be over for most states. I have used them several times and been quite happy with their service and prices. Clearly the lose a huge advantage with having to collect taxes (whether that is "fair" or not is a different discussion).
 
I think every Mac I've ever purchased new came straight from China, same watches.. ipads, etc.
 
PRICE DROP - the MacMini i7 with 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD is now $1599 at B&H, are shipping, and no sales tax for many states. In stock in NYC and ready to ship.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1441915-REG/apple_z0w1_mrtr27_bh_mac_mini_late_2018.htmlutm_medium=Email 1588429&utm_campaign=Cart&utm_source=Cart 190507&utm_content=Retail&utm_term=ViewItem

BTW, I just got notification that my MacMini shipped from China, that I ordered May 2nd, is out for delivery to me today, May 7! Built to order and FedExed from Shenzen, China in 5 days. Pretty good, I'd say.
 
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I ordered my Mac Mini on release day, i7, 16GB ram, 512GB SSD, I was at my home in the Canary Islands for another 2 days before returning to my home in the UK which was the day they said it would arrive from Shenzen. I thought, no chance. It arrived on time and early morning. was quite impressed given it went from China to Dubai, Germany, England and finally Scotland. in 49 hours.
 
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richpjr said:
Sadly, the days of not collecting sales tax by B&H seem to be over for most states.
Click to expand...

As a NJ resident, I am painfully aware of this. Have spent tons of money there and B&H is the greatest. But when they opened the NJ warehouse, it was a global 7% price increase for me. I still buy stuff there, because their service is great and they have a lot of pro video gear that's hard to find anywhere else. But for things like iPads, Macs, disk drives... I just go to my local Best Buy. They have a store in an enterprise zone where the sales tax is lower.

But, FWIW, B&H just launched a new program yesterday to address the sales tax issue: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/credit-cards

This is a good try, but I really don't want another credit card. If I am ever in a position where I need to buy a lot of stuff from B&H again, I would go for this. But in my current situation, it's not worth it.
 
Boyd01 said:
As a NJ resident, I am painfully aware of this. Have spent tons of money there and B&H is the greatest. But when they opened the NJ warehouse, it was a global 7% price increase for me. I still buy stuff there, because their service is great and they have a lot of pro video gear that's hard to find anywhere else. But for things like iPads, Macs, disk drives... I just go to my local Best Buy. They have a store in an enterprise zone where the sales tax is lower.

But, FWIW, B&H just launched a new program yesterday to address the sales tax issue: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/credit-cards

This is a good try, but I really don't want another credit card. If I am ever in a position where I need to buy a lot of stuff from B&H again, I would go for this. But in my current situation, it's not worth it.
Click to expand...

A credit card with a 29.99% interest rate - ouch!
 
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ocabj said:
Anyone who gets that card is only going to use it to dodge sales tax. You're not trying to carry a balance on it.
Click to expand...

I would HOPE so, but there are lots of cards with interest rates in the 20+% range that people rack up big balances on.
 
I ordered my 2018 Mac Mini fully tricked out on a Thursday afternoon, got an email with a tracking number 4 hours later and it arrived the following Monday. According to tracking it made it from China to the Phoenix warehouse via Memphis in less than 24 hours then it apparently sat in FedEx's warehouse for the weekend before it was delivered to me. I wonder if I had ordered it Wednesday if it would have been delivered that Friday...
 
N9JIG said:
I ordered my 2018 Mac Mini fully tricked out on a Thursday afternoon, got an email with a tracking number 4 hours later and it arrived the following Monday. According to tracking it made it from China to the Phoenix warehouse via Memphis in less than 24 hours then it apparently sat in FedEx's warehouse for the weekend before it was delivered to me. I wonder if I had ordered it Wednesday if it would have been delivered that Friday...
Click to expand...

It's become quite a small world after all! :D I'm sure that Apple has hundreds of products being put on FedEx planes every day - bound for various world locations - Memphis for the USA. It's probably a 10 or 12 hour flight to Memphis, then on another plane within a few hours to Phoenix and other destinations. Pretty amazing what world delivery has become with FedEx and such!
 
With just two or three day delivery, straight from the factory, it must be cost effective not to maintain a large warehouse in each country.
 
every Mac i ordered BTO from Apple, where shipped from China. My last preordered Iphones, Apple Watches always came directly from the Chinese Factory too. My MacMini 2018 (i7,64gb RAM,2TB SSD) ordered at Release Day came from China too, over Dubai and over night directly to Germany/Europe in 24h. Thats quite normal. :)
 
With delivery this fast, Headlines like "mystery illness strikes Shenzhen workers." become something to contemplate.
Perhaps a short quarantine is in order?
 
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