Any Apple users here? Anyone got an iPod? Any Mac zealot reading this bargain blog? To be honest, I have never owned an iPod. I did have a Mac though, a 4 year old second generation iBook G3 that runs Panther, and my wife still uses it as her main computer.

However I do recognise that an Apple is probably the hottest property a geek can possess. After all, who wants to use a PC anyway? As Apple has just released the latest MacBook Pro with Santa Rosa platform, maybe it would be good to evaluate where one can buy cheap Macs.

MoneyBackCo 3% MoneyBack

MoneyBackCo is having 3% moneyback on Apple products. Well, not exactly on Apple products, but everything you buy from the Australian Apple Store.

I know Steve has been chasing up these deals for a while so congratulation! It is offered through DGMAustralia to approved publishers. To get the 3% moneyback, you need to:

1. Get yourself a MoneyBackCo account if you haven’t.
2. Go to Apple’s page on MBC.
3. Click on the link at the bottom of page to go to Apple Australia.
4. You will get 3% moneyback in your MBC account on the amount you spend at Apple Store – GST.

Cheap Resellers

Apparently Apple is not the only one in town that can sell Apple products, as there are many authorised resellers. Many simply set the same price as Apple’s RRP, but some are passing on good discount to consumers.

Price comparison engine would be useful here, and a bit of search on Shopbot reveals quite a few resellers doing big savings over Apple’s RRP. For example,

• iPod Nano 4GB (from $259 vs. $299 from Apple)
• MacBook 2GHz (from $1,572 vs. $1,599 from Apple)
• iMac 24″ 2.16GHz (from $2,750 vs. $2,999 from Apple)

Do note that many resellers don’t include delivery cost, whereas Apple’s price includes delivery. Also you need to be careful with deals listed on these price comparison sites — some dodgy shops might not have stock at that price and want to sell you the same thing at a higher price.

Education Discount

samsoft24 posted a link on Apple education discount at OzBargain. I am fully aware of Apple’s education discount to students, teachers and academic staffs in K-12 schools, universities or TAFE colleges, and it is about the only reason for me if I ever want to go back to school (argh I hate exams and assignments).

Basically you enter into Apple Store using a special landing page, select the school/university/colleage that you are in, and you will be bounced to your school-branded Apple store with discount on almost every Apple product — well, except for iPod and Apple TV and some accessories. For example:

As you can see, there is quite a lot of discount which really makes Apple computers “affordable”. You need to be either a student or a staff member in order to qualify the EDU discount. Or, you are buying on behalf of your kids who is currently attending higher education.

Apple Certified Refurbished Products

If you don’t mind something “as good as new”, then Apple Certified Refurbished Products store, posted by John last week, might be a good alternative. They run clearance sales every now and then, and they are very cheap — to a point that you felt you are buying from that dodgy seller on eBay. But don’t you worry! All products sold at Apple, even refurbished ones, carry Apple’s 1 year warranty.

However, the obvious problems are

1. They don’t usually have the model you want.
2. Sometimes they are at least one generation behind.
3. The RRP price listed is when the product was sold “as new”, maybe 6 months to 1 year ago.
4. Refurbished is not new.

There are bargains to grab, and refurbished iPod can be substantially cheaper. You do need to be quick though, as the quantity is limited.

Shop Overseas

And guess what — the best way to save on Apple products is probably buying overseas. Duncan was wondering about the same thing as well — Mac Pro was so much cheaper in US than here, even if you factor in the GST. There are probably a billion reasons for the price differences (tax, hedging, economy of scale, etc). However the end result is the same — it sucks to be an Aussie shoppers.

Two cheapest Apple online stores are probably the US and Hong Kong stores, and I know Apple has international warranty on notebooks. Maybe put that into your overseas trip agenda. Or maybe you can ask your uncle in the States. Or you can use many services that let you shop in stores that only deliver to US addresses, and they will handle the delivery to Australia for you at a cost.

Summary

There is only one thing to remember — DON’T just browse into Apple Store (or walk into your local Apple Centre or Next Byte) and pay the recommended retail price. I did that when I bought my first iBook, but I don’t think I will repeat it again. Shop around, and there are many legitimate ways to get a cheaper Mac.