Do you think the new MacBook Pro is Overpriced?

If the MBP's were $100-200 dollars cheaper w/o the student discount I would consider getting one.

 

Hmm, somehow you are saying that now but if that were to happen either you or someone else would cry that Dell offers a $500.00 notebook and why won't Apple?

 

Eh I'm glad Apple doesn't offer a $500 notebook
Having a rep for quality and premium goods isn't necessarily a bad thing.

If Apple ever came out with an "inspiron" equivalent...I think all macbook users everywhere would have a heart attack

 

hmm somehow i dont think i would "cry" if Dell offered $500 for a pos computer.

 

I will have to wait for m1330 to concur with your last statement..

 

Disclaimer, my above statement does not apply to anything in the XPS line. In fact, just the opposite does

I find the XPS laptops to be horribly overpriced compared to their competition, especially the 1710 when you have Sager around. Oh well.

The Latitudes are still pretty cheap and a great deal for their value.
Inspirons are still pretty cheap and...well they're cheap.

 

overpriced and overvalued especially the 17"

 

I think they're overpriced. An Asus G1S has nearly the same specs has the high-end MBP 15" but is over $500 cheaper. And that's without decent warranty (1 year on a $2500 machine is just insane) and a Vista license (which I do need).

 

this thread doesn't really apply anymore.

right now, the cheapest macbook pro is underpriced. if you take all the rebates they offer and sell the equiptment, and get a student discount... when all is said and done, you can have a brand new macbook pro for 1499 + (tax on $2099)

1799 for mbp after student discount. $200 ipod w/ full rebate (sell) $100 printer w/ full rebate (sell). so you will need $2099+tax in cash or whatever.

but then you can take the rebates on the equipt. and get back $300. and you can sell the ipod and the printer ($300).

$1499+tax on $2099. rock on.

 

You cant presume everyone is a student.

Secondly, if apple is so inclined to automatic rebate a product for a specific 'group' of people(ie: students, disabled, blind, immigrants, native, etc etc etc) that just proves that the product is overpriced and they have that movement in their pricing.

If im a manufacturer and i build say a car and my dead nuts operating and building costs come to say $20,000. And i want to attract a certain group to the product and give them a $5000 rebate... guess what my MSRP will be?
You better believe im gonna make sure my MSRP is gonna surpass the cost+rebates so that theres still a margin when the rebates is exercised.

 

Yes the MBP is overpriced, but not really for this reason.

The G1S doesn't have nearly the same specs at all. It only has certain specs that match that of the MBP within a target audience. When people look a computer for a particular use, they only count the specs that matter for that primary purpose.

Gamers comparing the G1S to the MBP will notice the same GPU, the processor etc and think "oh same specs but $500 cheaper!" while missing the various other differences (weight, size, screen, etc.)

It's the same thing that you see in the "notebook recommendations" forum all the time: "Wow that inspiron has even better specs than that Latitude, but it's $800 cheaper! what a steal!". There's a sense that any spec not directly related to performance isn't worth extra money, and that's just not true for everyone.

As for the OS, it does come with OSX - sure you may factor in the cost of Vista for your own expenses...but that's not profit that's directly going to Apple or being figured into their profit margins other than as way to get PC users to buy more Macs...so you can't really attribute that price to Apple overpricing their Macs.

 

Also the macbooks from what I can tell have a bit better battery life than say the G1S, and depending on what you are using on the mac it could be better. For instance if you use garageband... rather than paying for a low-end easy to use DAW.
Thats not to say the SR MBP is the best of the best, its missing a few key things that I would like. Namely more USB slots and at least an SD card reader. Those can be remedied by an expresscard/34 card reader and a usb hub... however. Also without the student discount, but the macmall MIR. It makes the prices of the low-en SR MBP and the G1S about the same price ~1800 for G1S and ~1850 for the 2.2 MBP.
The MBP is also nice for those people that want a change of pace from running windows all the time... or those that just want to tri-boot and try out everything and really see what is best for them.
It is "overpriced" if you compare raw specifications, but its the whole user experiance that makes something good or not. Its just like a Mazda MX-5 Miata, on paper they are really not something that amazing... but after you drive one its quite love. (Though thats just me and looks, the Miata is cute... so is the MBP <3)

 

Not everyone can use a student discount. Everyone can use a Dell coupon.

I used a 30% percent Dell coupon, and waited until I got a good coupon before ordering my E1505 for $750 less. If I bought Apple Care with my MBP to make the warranties equal, the Dell was $1100 cheaper.

 

Agreed, too many times people look at the Macs and say, "Macs are overpriced"! Then they try to be fair and compare the basic specs. HDD size, amount of memory (without checking the speed), check to see if both the Mac and the PC have an Intel processor (without checking the speed) and believe it or not the GPU is overlooked most of the time (especially when purchased online or from an infomercial).
Since most of the basics match then the Mac is looked at as too expensive.
It's best to look at everything. If you are going to be closed minded and look at just the basics then a Mercedes or BMW are overpriced. I can get a low end Honda that drives, has 4 wheels, has power steering, power door locks, cruise control, etc.. That's my point.

 

But the Mercedes will be faster, have better handling and better seats, all qualities which can be defined. What I'm missing in your arguments why the MBP isn't overpriced is WHY it's not, instead of some vague 'you're just looking at specs, not the whole package'. The MBP looks alot nicer, is lighter and a bit thinner, has a faster CPU but comes with a year less warranty, has no Esata, HDMI (can be fixed with a convertor) or a card reader.

I'm not trying to attack the macbook or anything, I'm just really unsure on what to get and I would like to know if the extra cash is worth it to go for an Apple.

 

There you go...all of what you listed are features that can be defined--just not easily quantified (well, with the obvious exception of the CPU). There's also the LED screen - the first 15.4" screen to have one on a laptop.

The reason the MBP is overpriced for some and not for others is that those features you just listed are worth different amounts to different people. If style is priceless to you, the MBP and Sony laptops are a steal. If it's not, then it's a horrible waste of money.

Like your Mercedes analogy - you can get the same "specced" mercedes as a honda, and the mercedes will still be more expensive because of the brand that goes with it. To have that brand on the hood of your car is worth different amounts to different people.

 

Well i wouldnt go bloating about that considering an orange/yellow cast and worse viewing angles are being reported on some other forums as well as dedicated mac forums
We all know theres diff types and qualities in ccfl screens and its no diff for led backlites.

 

Well, as you said, that's no different than CCFL screens with the rather large range of qualities. But on average, LED screens should show some improvement.

I'm still wondering if they'd let me swap screens if mine comes with a Samsung instead of LG screens though Hey if Lenovo lets you...why not Apple

 

Well you shouldnt be saying that. It shows youre PC mentality coming out wanting to swap things lol
Owning a mac has always been take it or leave it. Everythings embedded into to core and thats tough luck for you if you think you want to OC anything

 

lol...well I can deal with not being picky if the screen turns out fine.

But if it's off-yellowish, then that's what I call a "defect" - and then it's not a matter of "swapping"...it's a matter of "fixing" and "replacing", and they better do that for what I paid on that warranty

 

It is definitely overpriced given the production quality now especially excessive heat and led-lit screen issues. Apple needs to make sure mbp build quality is above average to justify charging so much.

 

I don't think Apples are over-priced .. I think you get what you pay for .. I've used HPs and Dell notebooks in the past .. and after a while, the notebook chasis will start to creek .. it'll start making weird noises .. and stuff .. but my MacBook Pro (after a year of very heavy use) is still pretty much brand new looking! .. there's virtually no wear and tear on the machine .. and I'm on the laptop easily 10 hours a day .. I'm a writer .. so must've typed thousands and thousands of pages! ..

I can't say about the build quality compared to the Apples in the past .. since I'm a recent convert .. but I've really had no issues with this machine .. it's on all the time .. at night, it's usually left on to download things and so on .. and the whole day I'm on the machine ..

I don't see what's the over-heating issue people talk about .. it's very minor .. and is bound to happen to a notebook of this size .. (given the 1 inch thick chasis) .. no different from the HPs and Dells I've used in the past ..

 

to those of you who dont think you can use a student discount- you are mistaken.

seriously, my mom, went into the apple store and bought a mbp with a student discount. she hasn't been to school for a long time. she didn't push the idea either- the guy behind the apple guy behind the desk just offered it. in fact, i cried foul, but the apple retail guy said it didn't matter. so. i think they are for everyone.

 

lol! hey now don't screw over your mom that's not nice.

 

I been watching alot of videos on youtube, and it seems most of the SR MBPs have a fair amount of bleeding of the light at the bottom... is that really true or just a wierd pickup from the cameras?
Also, why the heck does the MBP still have such a low res camera when they are supposed to be a "premium" product, even $1200 HP laptops with a built in camera have them at 1.3mp
Furthermore, the warranty on the MBP is less than those of other people now, but the quality of it is better... just shorter.
All and all, the MBP is still alright priced. I just hope if i do end up getting one I would be happy with it... which I think i would, since looks of the laptop are pretty important to me. Though I will be "personalizing" it ^^
Also just to throw stuff on the mac vs dell debate. I used to work for a school district that gave each instructor thier choice of a dell inspiron or an ibook (second generation). I had to send in every ibook battery in for an exchange because they sucked (i think eventually they got recalled), but the dell inspirons i never had any problems with. Needless to say I still used the ibook regardless... its just in the 3 years I was working there the dell was a more hands-off no-downtime machine than the apple.

 

http://www.dell.com/content/topics/...ce/en/2006/2006_08_14_rr_002?c=us&l=en&s=corp
Better check your Inspirons just to be sure too

iBook...ah the horrors. I would've hated to be a Mac user during the time of the 1st-gen iBook If we're paying extra $ for the style of the MBP, I wonder if people got a discount to put up with the lack of style of the iBooks

 

Yeah no doubt, we had one 1st gen iBook... that we just kept around because of how odd it was.
Yeah I wouldn't doubt if the dell ones got recalled, but this was a few years ago (only worked there from 2000 to 2003 -- got the iBooks in 2001). Its just in that time I worked there only the mac batteries were having that problem
The problem we actually had with them was they would only give about 30mins of battery time and eventually none. I just looked up the batteries of the iBooks we had and they actually didn't get recalled. I also can't recall what kind of battery they ran on (NiMH, Li-Ion, etc) so could just be user error on the instructor's part (we got the notebooks literally 2 days before the school year started so I couldn't really go through every once of them personally).

 

I would say all Apple's are overpriced, but as per the fact that they are the only stock Mac systems available, it is worth it if you need to use MacOS.

 

Ha they're the best machine out there for running Windows...so for me (because I prefer Vista and XP over OS X) I can't forget that I would have dish out a few extra hundred bucks for a Microsoft OS...so yes regardless of what os you get I think their overpriced.

 

That's a preference, not a necessity.

That's like saying because laptops don't come with printers, they're all overpriced because you have to factor in the price of the printer. It doesn't make sense.

Although the MBP is a great machine for running Windows, Windows is not essential to the function of it as a computer. Apple is neither charging you for Windows nor forcing you to buy it for any features to work (unlike some other companies we might name ). So you can't really hold the cost of Windows against Apple's price.

Sure it makes the overall cost of your purchase higher if you choose to buy Windows, but that's your own choice and not something Apple is responsible for.

 

Most of us say it is overpriced simply because a few hundred extra is a big difference. Most of us see it as a premium price to get a better quality product, be it OS X, Mac software or hardware. When there is production quality problems associated with the machine, this sentiment will only get worse.

I used to think that Apple is like no other PC vendor. Apple selects the best components (CPU, memory, graphics card etc) in the market and assembles a Mac with care. Unfortunately as it turns out, every PC vendor out there suffers from the same production quality problems when the demand gets larger. Yes, Apple ships more Mac than ever before but the quality may have dropped as well.

With that in mind, the few hundreds dollars extra looks more like a thousand dollar. This is particularly obvious for a switcher who is fed up with Windows PC. Apple has traditionally tried to avoid competition by creating a market on its own. Now is the time for Apple to face the reality of competition.

 

taelrak-
Oh your right it is a personal choice...but for me...regardless of what os...I still think that they are overpriced. I agree with you but I think your printer analogy is a bit out there...the OS is a consideration when purchasing a system. Maybe if I thought OS X was out of this world I wouldn't think it is overpriced...but again I don't...just a personal choice..
I was actually talking to a guy who interned at Microsoft and he was saying that "a lot" of ppl there actually run Vista on a MBP because it runs so good...although I don't know how valid this guy was...haha...

 

Meh, this argument has gone on since the dawn of time. People who like apple hardware and need (or want) os x will buy it, simple as that. For my work I must have windows - this is not an option or a preference but a necessity. I just bought 1 week ago the new SR MBP (17" Hi Res, 160GB 7200 RPM, 2GB RAM, 2.4) because it can run both windows and OS X. And if you look around, there is nothing comparable to this machine. If there were, it would certainly be comparable in price to the top end 17" MBP.

 

The combination of a MBP with Windows is a preference based on personal choice, not a "necessity". I doubt your work "requires" you to have a Mac with Windows installed on it in that specific combination.

If Windows is a "necessity", then you can get a PC, and getting a Mac is your own preference.

Maybe we're just interpreting "overpriced" differently?

To me "overpriced" refers to the price of the item as set by the supplier (in this case Apple), including any and all profits that go directly to said supplier, provided that everything necessary for the basic functioning of that item is included. It does not necessarily include any expenses incurred by the consumer in the purchase of said item that do not go directly to Apple, including but not limited to taxes, accessories, shipping, and extra software.

So in this case, I'm basically taking the actual MBP w/ all hardware inside it, OSX that comes with it, the power adapter and possibly AppleCare into account when I consider the price.

As a result, Windows is an "extraneous" purchase because 1) the cost of it does not go to Apple and thus shouldn't be considered whether Apple charges too much for the MBP and 2) it's not a necessity for the function of the MBP, as Apple already includes a working OS with it that you already paid for.

 

While that was so eloquent it is nothing but hogwash :/ Show me a laptop with the same specs as the 17" MBP with my specs. Now please tell me how overpriced the machine is. It isnt. I can buy a PC laptop with NO OS at all so you dont even need to figure an operating system into the equation for the PC laptop. The ONLY thing that will compare once it is out will be the Dell XPS which will be more $$

 

Please read what I wrote more carefully. I never once said that the MBP wasn't overpriced. In fact, I believe it is.

What I did say is that counting the additional price of Windows into whether or not the MBP was overpriced doesn't make sense for much the same reasons as you wouldn't count the price of extra accessories, backpacks, office software, etc. into weighing whether or not a PC was "overpriced" or not.

What does having no OS bundled have to do with the argument as stated above when we are talking about an "additional" OS? MBP comes with OSX, the price of which you are already paying for with the computer. Of course, that price would be counted as part of whether or not the MBP is overpriced, since you're paying Apple directly for it. My rebuttal was never on whether or not the included costs of what Apple made you pay was fair or not, but on whether or not including the cost of additional unnecessary accessories in the calculus of whether or not the MBP was overpriced was fair to Apple.

Look at it from the opposite point of view. Suppose Apple allowed OSX to be installed on all laptops, and Lenovo continued to sell laptops with only Windows or Ubuntu as an option. After you bought a Thinkpad, you decided you wanted OSX. After buying OSX, the cost of your total purchase rose an extra $130 beyond what you planned. Would you accuse the Thinkpad of being "overpriced" for that reason alone? You might accuse it of being unfairly restrictive, but that's not the same thing.

Another example that I mentioned before:
You buy a printer from HP after buying the MBP. A printer is arguably necessary to your work to a degree. It's a very expensive printer. You might consider the overall investment needed to do your work "overpriced", but you wouldn't call the MBP overpriced for only that reason.

 

I didnt read all posts here, but the jump from 2.2 to 2.4 on the 15 inchers is interesting; according to this, it's over 200 dollars just for the .2 increase in speed - and that's OEM price. So, is what remains of the 500 dollar difference (about 250?) what the vram is worth? I doubt it, at least for me, but it is interesting...

 

Yeah, the 2.4 model is not $500 better.

200MHz
+40GB lager HD
128 extra VRAM

The 256MB video card would be really nice, but it's a steep price to pay.

 

Personally in my opinion I believe that people think the MacBook Pro is overpriced because they undervalue Mac OS X. I believe that when you incorporate Mac OS X into the price and consider what all you are getting for 2000 or 2500 $ versus say an Asus G1s with similar specs and Vista, that the MacBook Pro is way worth the bit extra.

 

I agree, dmlogs, but only if the installed software is of interest to the buyer. Some of what I consider to be nifty programs, others consider to be junk. Can't please everyone - it's great to have so many notebook choices, no?

 

Even with Intels huge price gap between the 2.0 GHz and the 2.4 my Alienware (if I take away the second vid card) is cheaper than the Macbook Pro!
@ dmlogs - is that why you spend 100$ on a service pack?

 

I'm a musician and I compose game soundtracks. I've always wanted to have a stable environment for my audio applications to work in, and OS X gave me exactly that. The bonus? I can still run/play/test/research my Windows games with bootcamp and then get back to OSX to work. So I got the best of both worlds.

Compared to the Asus G1s, the MBP gives me the better more stable OS for my work, and the same performance for the games + a nice and undenyable bonus of sexy looks, better battery life, LED screen and portability.

So no, I don't think the MBP is overpriced. I spent almost $3,000 with all the accessories and tax and whatnot, and I don't regret any penny of it!

But yeah, I guess in the end it's all about what you need the computer for and personal prefferences...

 

Yes, I agree - cheap describes it well.

 

Remember when Alienware were Indie and Cool ? I'm old.

 

Old?? You are old if you still remember how to insert disks into a 5 1/2" floppy drive.

You are really old if you still know how to use a tape drive. I have only heard about those.

You are ancient if you know how to use vacuum tubes.

 

Gah, ouch ; ;

 

Ouch. My Atari800 had a cassette recorder for storing programs. Painful it was.

 

lol. no way.

 

Way. You had to write down the numbers from the counter. Rewind the tape to 0. A program could be between 134 and 210 on the counter... so you fast forward to 134, get the computer ready to receive data, and press play.

To save, you actually recorded it.

I lol just remembering all that... lol

 

Consider the fact that the 8600GT on the MBP is a lower clocked version of the one found on windows machines, almost 20%