[X-Newbies] Buying Macs

[Randy B.Singer]

Lee Morgan said:

>What are the pros and cons of buying Macs from sources other than Apple?  I
>see ads in places like MacWorld for other vendors and I wonder how they can
>manage to sell at somewhat lower prices, and what would I be missing if I
>bought from them.  Any thoughts on the subject?  Thanks.


If you see an ad for a Macintosh that is substantially lower than the 
price you find everywhere else, it more than likely means that the dealer 
is not an Apple-authorized dealer and/or that the product is "grey 
market" which means that it was acquired by the vendor in a manner that 
violates Apple's agreement with authorized dealers.

Long story short, a grey market Macintosh is ineligible for service and 
warranty support from Apple.  Making the deal a very bad one, no matter 
what the discount.

Apple very tightly controls the pricing on new Macs via something called 
"MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) contracts" and protected dealer 
territories.  Other than package deals that include periperhals or RAM, 
you will almost never see a substantial price discount on a new Mac.  At 
least not a *legitimate* price discount from an Apple-authorized dealer.

The best deal going for a new model Mac is usually a factory refurbished 
Mac.  But don't get a refurbished Mac that isn't *factory* refurbished, 
or it might just be a lemon that a dealer is trying to offload on you.



Randy B. Singer
Co-Author of: The Macintosh Bible (4th, 5th and 6th editions)

Routine OS X Maintenance and Generic Troubleshooting
http://www.macattorney.com/ts.html