why are apple laptops so expensive?

[Brodel]

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I've been looking to get a new laptop and thought I'd like to try an apple, but the very cheapest laptop from the education website is still ?657 (12" 1.33mhz power pc G4) which is a lot for a student.

Is there something I'm missing and there are cheaper apple laptops from their website that I just cant find? I see a lot of people with them, so I didn't think they'd all be spending that much on them when they mainly use them to word process and other basic tasks.:huh::

[fudgetunnel]

They aren't.

Next question...

[NeoXY]

^...nice response, care to explain? :/

Apple laptops are a bit more expensive because they're better built and I guess a part of it is beacause you're always paying a little extra for the "Apple" name I guess...

Personally, I had to fork over a lot of money for my PowerBook also, so yeah that is the price they are going for so to get them or not is up to you...

[Vice]

There not that much, for ?657 a 12-inch laptop with all the iBook's features is quite a good deal. WiFi Bluetooth small form factor noiseless operation and most laptops around this price point wont let you change it's RAM and the iBook even gives you this luxury.

It's cheap for what your getting.

[Dr.Jones]

They have their own market. Most people won't compare a normal PC laptop with a Mac laptop when they need to buy one, so there is not much a need for competitive pricing on Apple's part

[hotdog666al]

They are machines for P0$h people ;)

Seriously. You get what you pay for.

[ollie_webbuk]

Yeah, the iBook is a solid little machine. It hasn't even got any sharp corners.

[theyarecomingforyou]

Apple charge it, people buy it... it's good marketing, nothing more.

[Sillysam]

Well, it is like the same Question? Why are Feraries so expencive. The differnce is obviuse...

[Brodel]

They aren't.

Next question...

Well maybe for some people $1000 isn't a lot, but for most it is and especially students.

I agree you get what you pay for, but why don't they consider doing a budget line? It makes sense considering a lot of people are put off by being unfamiliar with them, and the price tag doesn't really encourage first timers to buy.

[KeeperOfThePizza]

That isnt true. I know of plenty Windows based laptops that are far more expensive and alot faster.

[+.Vamp Subscriber²]

.

That isnt true. I know of plenty Windows based laptops that are far more expensive and alot faster.

Yes there are plently of windows laptops that are more expensive, but what Brodel is saying is that Laptops running windows have a more 'budget' range, with lesser features, and therefore more affordable, but apple doesn't seem to have that.

[Vice]

Well maybe for some people $1000 isn't a lot, but for most it is and especially students.

I agree you get what you pay for, but why don't they consider doing a budget line? It makes sense considering a lot of people are put off by being unfamiliar with them, and the price tag doesn't really encourage first timers to buy.

The iBooks are there consumer/budget line, they make them as cheap as possible while still giving you a decent computer for your money. $600 is very cheap. If you want a cheaper Mac you should look at the Mac Mini or go to eBay and get an old iBook/Powerbook.

[mrogers]

To be fair, you'll find that Apple's notebooks are pretty close to Dell laptops if you configure them as indentically as possible. Apple's laptops seem a lot more expensive at first because they don't have stripped down versions that they start with, like most companies.

[bontakun]

also in all fairness apples are way more expensive in the uk than in the us, way more, ~ 25% more

[thermal+paste]

^...nice response, care to explain? :/

Apple laptops are a bit more expensive because they're better built and I guess a part of it is beacause you're always paying a little extra for the "Apple" name I guess...

Personally, I had to fork over a lot of money for my PowerBook also, so yeah that is the price they are going for so to get them or not is up to you...

I wouldn't say the're better built, just more shiek. It's a simple equation = costs + profit margin = price. They are either making lots of profit or they are expensive to make.

[aristotle-dude]

Maybe their iBooks are getting a little long in the tooth for the price but the Core Duo Macbooks are price competitive with other big name brands including Dell if you compare similarly equipped hardware. They are a bargain if you also consider the bundled software.

You are never going to see Apple competing with the cheapest Dell offerings.

[foxconn287]

I remember one dude that said the reason Apple notebooks are more expensive is because you are joining the Apple culture. Any truth to this? :rofl:

[thermal+paste]

I remember one dude that said the reason Apple notebooks are more expensive is because you are joining the Apple culture. Any truth to this? :rofl:

Apple has a design department in their organization. This increases cost to consumer. Basically you are directly paying for the design of the product. In a sense this makes your statement about 'culture' correct. Look at the new HiFi boom box. Very expensive, only 54 - 16k Hz but small and white. You like what you buy hopefully. Perhaps part of the apple culture resides concerning asthetics. ?

edit: and the price associated with the look your are purchasing.

I've seen compaq laptops and toshiba laptops here at school. They look fine also imo. I belive the design is part of what Seve Jobs would call the 'culture' of the product.

He is quoted saying about Microsoft that 'The problem with Microsoft is, and I don't mean this in a small way I mean this in a big way (pause) is that they don't bring any culture into their product.'

This is a paraphrase.

Perhaps the top down organizational structure via jobs creates these extra product costs regarding product design. But their ipod is heavily copied you think.

[macro]

I love almost everything about Apple, except the choices they give for price ranges. It's like I get to choose either:

A) Expensive

B) More Expensive

C) Incredibly Expensive

or

D) How the #@*! could that be so Expensive?

[thermal+paste]

I love almost everything about Apple, except the choices they give for price ranges. It's like I get to choose either:

A) Expensive

B) More Expensive

C) Incredibly Expensive

or

D) How the #@*! could that be so Expensive?

I agree. That's why I built my apple by hand with parts off ebay.

[macro]

I agree. That's why I built my apple by hand with parts off ebay.

Really what did you end up with for specs and how much did it cost you if you don't mind me asking?

[thermal+paste]

Really what did you end up with for specs and how much did it cost you if you don't mind me asking?

The original purchase will be a used mac system. I chose a Sawtooth G4 of eBay. This will run you around 200-300 US dollars.

This will be a

PPC 7400 400-500 MHz machine

maybe 256 MB ram

and IDE hdd, 40-80 gig

no os

no keyboard, sometimes you can find one

power supply

graphics card (Rage 128)

dvd-rom

extra purchases after this will increase cost but allow you to get exactly what you want in terms of speed and upgrades

I have added many parts over time and experimented a lot with different setups

I have added

DVD-Rom new one (50)

Radeon 256 MB AGP (250)

1 GB ram (forget cost, 200)

SATA controllers (120 a pop)

Disks (whatever you want)

Power supply (100)

The sawtooth mother board is actually very nice.

You can port the mobo to any case you want and just drill standoffs.

I spend a good deal of money on r/d regarding what to adapt and where

You will loose airport capacity if you goto a new case

You will gain much though b/c the stock g4 case is very small

I moved to a TJ07 and now am running 6 hdd, many fans, etc.

It's easy really. The hardest part is mounting the motherboard in the new case and supporting it and lining up the pci cards.

This is a little off topic for this particular post but basically you can buy a old G4 tower off ebay for about 200 bucks. Just use your existing monitor and mouse. You may need to buy a new keyboard because the characters are mapped differently.

I went with a pro keyboard (usb wired, not wireless) they are cheap, only like 29 bucks. Maybe 19 I forget. The OS will cost a pretty penny. I bought Tiger for around 100 US dollars. Just piece what you want really. It's fun.

[thermal+paste]

So basically the total now is

Case____400.00

SATA Controllers____240.00

RAM____200.00 (Pc 100 but it's 2-2-2 speed code so that'll make it more expensive)

DISKS____700.00

Fans____40.00

SATA cables____100.00 these are UV cables with locks, advanced but will never unseat

PPC power supply____100.00

Radeon 9800 256 MB____250.00 from newegg

Fanbus____50.00

DVD-Rom____50.00

BlackLights____25.00

MiscZipTiesetc____100.00

Y-connectors for power____10.00

Rounded IDE cable____15.00

new processor____300.00

keyboard___30

mouse____80

monitor____280

speakers____130

os___129

total about 3000 dollars us but the nice thing is compared to a G5 you don't have to pay 3 grand outright. You just add as you see needed. That was the main draw to this type of build.

[linux2]

Until recently they were innovative designs using materials not found in other laptops. <ie> The 1st with a 17" display, All white iBook shell, Titanium shell, Aluminum shell, backlit keys, mag power connector, etc. Now you pay the price for the Apple name much like you would for BMW, Cartier, Godiva et all. OS X is a pretty good reason to.