What should I do now [regarding rMBP purchase]?

[skaertus]

So, WWDC 2013 is over now and the only one thing I was hoping would get released did not. Apple announced the new MBA, but the rMBP remained unchanged. I want a rMBP with the dazzling IPS screen and the ultra-high resolution. Therefore, the TN screen of the MBA, with the much lower resolution, is totally out of question for me. WWDC was a disappointment to me.

I don't know when new rMBPs will be released with the Haswell processor; perhaps in August or October. The fact is that it is very unlikely that any new rMBP will be released before the end of June.

Now, here's my situation. I live in Brazil, where rMBPs cost from US$ 2,500 to US$ 6,000. I'll be in NYC tomorrow and I'll be back in the end of June. I'll be able to buy the rMBP for the price it is sold in the US, but it will be the Ivy Bridge version, and not Haswell.

So, I have two options: (i) buy the rMBP with Ivy Bridge while I'm in NYC for the price charged in the US or (ii) buy the Haswell rMBP, with its improved battery and better GPU, for almost double the price, when it gets released here in Brazil. I cannot have it shipped to Brazil when it is launched, as I would have to pay incredibly heavy taxes (which is the reason why these products are so expensive here).

Which of these two options do you recommend?

 

[B...]

That is a really hard decision. How important is battery life for you? If you keep it plugged in most of the time I would just get the IB model. GPU upgrades also considered, the MBA got the 5000, which means the rMBP will get the 5100 or 5200 (or 5000), and the 5000 was only a 40% improvement. Basically, don't expect great increases in anything.

I wanted a rMBP 13" today too, but oh well.

 

[HiDEF]

That is a really hard decision. How important is battery life for you? If you keep it plugged in most of the time I would just get the IB model. GPU upgrades also considered, the MBA got the 5000, which means the rMBP will get the 5100 or 5200 (or 5000), and the 5000 was only a 40% improvement. Basically, don't expect great increases in anything.

I wanted a rMBP 13" today too, but oh well.

B..., you've been pretty active on these boards so I wanted to ask without spamming skaertus threads but what are you finally going to do? get a MBA or rMBP?

 

[cntwtfrmynwmbp]

Which of these two options do you recommend?

Depends on:

(1) if you can and/or want to wait a few months and

(2) if you can and/or want to pay twice as much for your rMBP

 

[iPoopeh]

If I were you... I'd purchase one while I'm in the States. I'm sorry, but double/triple the amount just for Haswell isn't worth it in my eyes. We probably won't see an update until October, so get it now and enjoy! ^ ^

 

[Stetrain]

Buy a refurbished model while you're in the US. You can have it shipped to the store now so you can check it out before you leave the store.

That way you're getting basically current-gen technology but at a very reduced price, especially compared to what you would pay at home.

That way it won't sting so much when new models are announced.

 

[B...]

B..., you've been pretty active on these boards so I wanted to ask without spamming skaertus threads but what are you finally going to do? get a MBA or rMBP?

Well, I'm not quite sure now. If Apple had never lowered the rMBP's pricing I would go for the Air. But they did, and I went to see it, and I can't go back to a lower resolution TN display, even though it may have an amazing battery life. So I am going to wait, because the fact that they didn't update it means the update should be relatively soon. I don't know how soon, but Iris is available Q3, and that starts July. Hopefully they will be out by August, so I can have it with the Back to School promo. Battery life is pretty important to me, though, as it will be my on-the-go computer. Even though 12 hours is really appealing, the screen and the 1.3-2.6 GHz processor are pushing me away.

So the choice is to wait even more, or settle for much less in some ways, but more in others. What would you do?

 

[swerve147]

Buy a refurbished model while you're in the US. You can have it shipped to the store now so you can check it out before you leave the store.

That way you're getting basically current-gen technology but at a very reduced price, especially compared to what you would pay at home.

That way it won't sting so much when new models are announced.

+1 for Apple refurbished rMBP. The base 15 is down to $1599 USD and is not a slouch by any means of the imagination (8 GB is plenty and so is 256 if you're willing to get a cheap external HDD). And apparently much cheaper than what you can get in Brazil without sacrificing much performance. I can't imagine any Haswell upgrade being worth almost double the price of the current MacBook.

 

[Augustine864]

So, WWDC 2013 is over now and the only one thing I was hoping would get released did not. Apple announced the new MBA, but the rMBP remained unchanged. I want a rMBP with the dazzling IPS screen and the ultra-high resolution. Therefore, the TN screen of the MBA, with the much lower resolution, is totally out of question for me. WWDC was a disappointment to me.

I don't know when new rMBPs will be released with the Haswell processor; perhaps in August or October. The fact is that it is very unlikely that any new rMBP will be released before the end of June.

Now, here's my situation. I live in Brazil, where rMBPs cost from US$ 2,500 to US$ 6,000. I'll be in NYC tomorrow and I'll be back in the end of June. I'll be able to buy the rMBP for the price it is sold in the US, but it will be the Ivy Bridge version, and not Haswell.

So, I have two options: (i) buy the rMBP with Ivy Bridge while I'm in NYC for the price charged in the US or (ii) buy the Haswell rMBP, with its improved battery and better GPU, for almost double the price, when it gets released here in Brazil. I cannot have it shipped to Brazil when it is launched, as I would have to pay incredibly heavy taxes (which is the reason why these products are so expensive here).

Which of these two options do you recommend?

You and I have been on a similar time crunch for a couple of months with leaving the states. I know that as far as what I am doing in response to the WWDC let down, I am going to just buy the current gen rMBP. I can't afford to wait much longer and I don't think I'll really notice what I'm missing anyway.

If they do come out and blow the current gen away truly, we (I) could always resell I suppose and make up as much of the difference as possible. In your case, you could probably sell a current gen used at elevated Brazil prices and still make up a lot of the difference, no? Then at least upgrading would still be "cheaper" than waiting and buying a new one while in Brazil with nothing of offset the cost.

 

[CJM]

Just gonna continue waiting here. There was no immediate need for me to buy, so I guess I'll just have to see over the next coupla months.

 

[skaertus]

Apparently everybody agrees that I should buy it right away. Apart from the price, I'm getting tired of this waiting game. I'm waiting for the retina Mac since the iPad with retina display (3rd gen) launched in March 2012...

 

[bbishop93]

heres a third option what if you buy it here in the states brand new dont open it and sell it in brazil for a lot more but less than what you would have to pay down there im sure someone would buy it and then use that difference you made to then buy the haswell when it comes out or use that diff to pay for another flight to the us to then buy the new haswell.

 

[Lunfai]

Poor skaertus , I thought of you when they didn't announce it.. damn.

 

[Mr. RPG]

Just out of curiosity, has Apple ever done this before?

Update one line-up and not the other?

I don't know. I feel like we will be seeing Retina MacBook Pro before September..

More people will be buying Airs for the time being and then they can announce a rMBP.. but then again why didn't do they to begin with..?

Ugh, I don't get why they didn't announce new Pros. I just don't understand.

 

[skaertus]

heres a third option what if you buy it here in the states brand new dont open it and sell it in brazil for a lot more but less than what you would have to pay down there im sure someone would buy it and then use that difference you made to then buy the haswell when it comes out or use that diff to pay for another flight to the us to then buy the new haswell.

Thanks, but I don't think it's so easy. There's not a big demand for rMBPs here, as they are so expensive. I've never seem one in the wild. People usually buy the MBA in the US because it's cheaper. And most people don't even use Macs. Macs account for 1.5% of the computers in the country. The rMBP would be a hard sell here.

 

[Blue Sun]

I've got a suspicion that Apple are waiting for Iris Pro chips to become available and as such, come update time there will no longer be a dedicated GPU abailable for the rMBP. I think it is something Apple is likely to do, given their simplistic philosophies. I hope that I'm wrong though.

 

[gamerish]

If the integrated graphics on the Iris Pro is the only GPU in the new 15" model, I'll just buy one of the higher end refurb Retinas from this gen.

 

[Jazwire]

3rd option - Fly back to US when released.

Fly to Florida, Texas etc, spend 1-2 days here, fly back. (Or Oregon, Montana, they dont have any sales tax.)

Guessing it would still be cheaper than paying an extra $2-3,000.

Plus you get a little mini trip.


Sucks though you can't get it while you are here though.

If i had to pick between your choices, I'd just get one new now. Nothing the new one has or will have is worth 2X the price.

 

[bbishop93]

Thanks, but I don't think it's so easy. There's not a big demand for rMBPs here, as they are so expensive. I've never seem one in the wild. People usually buy the MBA in the US because it's cheaper. And most people don't even use Macs. Macs account for 1.5% of the computers in the country. The rMBP would be a hard sell here.

Even if you could sell it a good amount cheaper since you bought it cheaper?

 

[skaertus]

I guess the best option would be to buy one now. I think I've got three options of stores here: Apple Store, Best Buy and BH, right? Which would be the best one, considering that I intend to take it back and get a refund immediately if it comes with any dead pixel?

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Even if you could sell it a good amount cheaper since you bought it cheaper?

If I sell it much cheaper, then the whole thing won't be worth it...

 

[bbishop93]

I guess the best option would be to buy one now. I think I've got three options of stores here: Apple Store, Best Buy and BH, right? Which would be the best one, considering that I intend to take it back and get a refund immediately if it comes with any dead pixel?

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If I sell it much cheaper, then the whole thing won't be worth it...

not necessarily if they cost 2500-6k in brazil and here in the US there from 1700-3200 lets say you get the top of the line model, here i maxed it out at 3450 not including any student discount you could possibly get. So if what you say in brazil is right then you have a 2,550 difference lets say you then sell that model for 4k vs the 6k it costs in brazil.... you'd have an extra 550$ to do with what you please aka buy a plane ride to us to buy the haswell version when it comes out. Now those numbers may be off bc idk pricing in brazil but thats on you. The MAXED out US version is at 3450 so you do the math idk which model you want...

 

[skaertus]

What should I do now?

not necessarily if they cost 2500-6k in brazil and here in the US there from 1700-3200 lets say you get the top of the line model, here i maxed it out at 3450 not including any student discount you could possibly get. So if what you say in brazil is right then you have a 2,550 difference lets say you then sell that model for 4k vs the 6k it costs in brazil.... you'd have an extra 550$ to do with what you please aka buy a plane ride to us to buy the haswell version when it comes out. Now those numbers may be off bc idk pricing in brazil but thats on you. The MAXED out US version is at 3450 so you do the math idk which model you want...

Thanks. Makes sense, but doesn't work in Brazil. Most laptops are usually sold for US$ 500 to USS 800 here (very low end), and usually people will only pay more if it is a Mac (but not these prices, and people who buy Macs, usually buy from authorized retail) or a gaming laptop. Or they buy these models when they travel to the US.

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Which store should I buy from, considering my previous post?

 

[GermanyChris]

What are your realistic options??

MBA is new you can have it now but you don't like the screen so thats out..

The iPad maxi didn't get upgraded and likely won't until after you leave so buy now and pay 2500 or wait and pay 6k. Haswell costs you $3500

Why is this decision hard?

 

[swerve147]

Which store should I buy from, considering my previous post?

The Apple Store will give you the least headaches, and probably the best purchasing experience overall.

 

[skaertus]

What are your realistic options??

MBA is new you can have it now but you don't like the screen so thats out..

The iPad maxi didn't get upgraded and likely won't until after you leave so buy now and pay 2500 or wait and pay 6k. Haswell costs you $3500

Why is this decision hard?

My choices are basically the 13" or the 15" rMBP, which I think I'm going to buy right now at US prices instead of waiting for Haswell... Which store should I buy it from? Best Buy, Apple Store or BH? Considering the return policy...