Apple notebook fire sale continues with $1,499 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display
The entry-level price for an Apple MacBook Pro with Retina display has been unofficially slashed by $200 to just $1,499, as the company continues to work with its indirect sales channel to push units on the back of a lackluster quarter for Mac sales in general.
MacConnection on Saturday let AppleInsider know that it's now selling for a limited time the 2.5GHz 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display (8GB/128GB model MD212LL/A) for $1,499 -- a $200 price drop on the entry-level Retina product and the lowest entry-level pricing for a Retina display equipped MacBook Pro available since the notebook's inception.
The move comes on the heels of several other price reductions and limited-time fire sales on Apple's notebook offerings that have been viewed as abnormal, especially in light of their close proximity to the recently-ended and heavily-discounted holiday shopping season.
It's a trend that began in earnest just days before Apple released results for its fourth calendar quarter of the year that spooked industry-watchers and analysts when they revealed a 17% year-over-year decline in Mac unit sales. Shares of the Cupertino-based company bled more than 10% of their value in the hours following the disclosure.
The Mac maker, which has largely outperformed the overall PC industry several times over during the last several years, is particularly sensitive of steep price cuts that it believes could devalue the company's brand image in the eyes' of consumers.
Therefore, there's suspicion that Apple was working in concert with Best Buy when it slashed MacBook Air prices and subsequently MacBook Pro prices by double digit percentages just weeks after Christmas.
In the hours, days and weeks that followed, several other members of Apple's reseller channel engaged in a game of follow-the-leader, yielding the lowest first-quarter pricing (Price Guide) for Mac notebooks yet.
MacConnection on Saturday let AppleInsider know that it's now selling for a limited time the 2.5GHz 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display (8GB/128GB model MD212LL/A) for $1,499 -- a $200 price drop on the entry-level Retina product and the lowest entry-level pricing for a Retina display equipped MacBook Pro available since the notebook's inception.
The move comes on the heels of several other price reductions and limited-time fire sales on Apple's notebook offerings that have been viewed as abnormal, especially in light of their close proximity to the recently-ended and heavily-discounted holiday shopping season.
It's a trend that began in earnest just days before Apple released results for its fourth calendar quarter of the year that spooked industry-watchers and analysts when they revealed a 17% year-over-year decline in Mac unit sales. Shares of the Cupertino-based company bled more than 10% of their value in the hours following the disclosure.
The Mac maker, which has largely outperformed the overall PC industry several times over during the last several years, is particularly sensitive of steep price cuts that it believes could devalue the company's brand image in the eyes' of consumers.
Therefore, there's suspicion that Apple was working in concert with Best Buy when it slashed MacBook Air prices and subsequently MacBook Pro prices by double digit percentages just weeks after Christmas.
In the hours, days and weeks that followed, several other members of Apple's reseller channel engaged in a game of follow-the-leader, yielding the lowest first-quarter pricing (Price Guide) for Mac notebooks yet.
Comments
Real. Classy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Phone-UI-Guy
$200 off is a fire sale? You don't know what a fire sale is.
considering how Apple rarely drops their prices this is indeed a fire sale.
Quote:
Originally Posted by charlituna
So no the price hasn't been dropped, AI posted an ad to a reseller they likely get a commission off as an article.
Real. Classy.
Dude, lighten up a little...if I was in the market for a MBP, this would be good information.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xtacee1990
considering how Apple rarely drops their prices this is indeed a fire sale.
Agreed!
Quote:
Originally Posted by xtacee1990
considering how Apple rarely drops their prices this is indeed a fire sale.
Apple didn't drop their prices.
AI's bait and switch advertising apparently worked on you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OriginalMacRat
Apple didn't drop their prices.
AI's bait and switch advertising apparently worked on you.
Do you even know what bait-and-switch means?
These products are in stock at their advertised specials. (example, $200 less than Apple's price and in stock at the time of this post: http://www.macconnection.com/IPA/Shop/Product/Detail.htm?sku=14969656) They are not trying to upsell you on something else. Hence, no bait-and-switch.
Anyone know how many displays the 13 inch retina MacBook Pro can drive?
I read once that the 15 incher could drive up to three external displays. I'd pick up the 13 inch model if it could drive at least two...
"As we projected a quarter ago, we were significantly constrained with respect to the new iMacs and were only able to ship them for the final month of the December quarter. We believe our [B]Mac sales would have been much higher absent those constraints[/B]. We began and ended the quarter with between three and four weeks of Mac channel inventory on a look-forward basis, which is below our target range of four to five weeks."
So no, the 17% decline is not alarming, because it was a one time issue due to supply constraints on a new product, not a demand issue.
And even if Apple were to get more aggressive with pricing eventually, I would see that as very positive. They would likely gain market and mind share even faster, especially in enterprise. And then benefit from the halo effect in iPhone and iPad etc sales, where they make their real money, not to mention content which is also has strong growth.
Shopping around for a windows laptop as my wife needs it for work, we both were surprised at the poor quality.
Plastic fantastic rubbish, eventually we settled on a Sony ultra book, running windows 8, as it was the closest MBA clone and we love Sony products.
But the quality between the two are far apart, and the Sony is noticeably thicker.
To preempt comments, I know I could have bought another MBA and run windows, but my wife is anti-computer and simply wants to turn it on and get things done as quickly as possible for her customers.
TheTtech Specs for both the 13" with only an integrated GPU and the 15" with both an integrated and discreet GPU state:
I wouldn't buy it for $999. Web pages look like s*** on that retina display and unless the whole internet plans on upgrading every graphic I have no desire to own one.
Originally Posted by bdkennedy1
I wouldn't buy it for $999. Web pages look like s*** on that retina display and unless the whole internet plans on upgrading every graphic I have no desire to own one.
Vicious circle. That you refuse to update means website designers refuse to update, which makes you refuse to update which means…
Most websites are text, which looks just fine. Any image worth its salt works fine, as well.
…unless the whole internet plans on upgrading every graphic…
Nonsensical hyperbole. I bet you have Flash, even though the "whole Internet" does not, has not, and will never plan to use it.
OK. Don't buy it.
Hint: no one cares.
Actually I'm not surprised with these price drops at all. The retina machines are grossly overpriced which is probably is the result of constrained supplies for the new retina screens. So I'd expect Apple to try to find a more sustainable price for retina hardware as supplies increase.
Further they need to do this before the next hardware rev. For the same reason I expect the 15" to start coming down in price.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xtacee1990
considering how Apple rarely drops their prices this is indeed a fire sale.
Seeing overpriced as a result of constrained supply seems like the opposite conclusion to make. If a product is overpriced it will not be purchased because it's over the price that people are willing to pay so how can you then say the supply is constrained if they aren't being purchased?
I think the price will come down as the cost to manufacturer those displays and ability to produce more displays increase but I think the current prices are great for an IPS display of these resolutions on a notebook PC.
• unless there is illegal price gouging which doesn't apply any PC.
Originally Posted by wizard69
The retina machines are grossly overpriced…
I don't think that's true, component for component or overall.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bdkennedy1
I wouldn't buy it for $999. Web pages look like s*** on that retina display and unless the whole internet plans on upgrading every graphic I have no desire to own one.
I don't have a retina Macbook, but I do have a retina iPad, and let me tell you, the internet looks pretty damn good on that iPad. Just for text alone, retina does wonders.
You're completely clueless on this, and as a result, you're denying yourself a superb web-browsing experience.
Both Safari and Firefox are completely retina. Once you see what the typical web page looks like, you'll have trouble going back to a non-retina screen.
Edit: Just saw that Apple][ posted something similar.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rothgarr
Anyone know how many displays the 13 inch retina MacBook Pro can drive?
I read once that the 15 incher could drive up to three external displays. I'd pick up the 13 inch model if it could drive at least two...
The HD4000 can drive the internal display plus two external displays.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xtacee1990
considering how Apple rarely drops their prices this is indeed a fire sale.
Well, in percentage terms, the drop in price of the MacBook Air from the Rev C (sold June 2009 - September 2010) to the Rev D sold from October 2010- July 2011 was bigger. My guess is that the Rev B rMBP will start at $1499.
As for Mac sales in general, I think the iMac supply constraints were a bigger factor than the high price of the rMBP. I'm guessing that the rMBP deliberately wasn't priced to sell in high volumes during the holiday. But now as yields on displays are getting better and we are in the post-holiday lull, Apple is starting to make the line mainstream.
Regarding the stock price, since the iPhone is half of Apple's profits, and iPad is another quarter, my guess is that the decline was mostly out of concern that the iPhone has reached a saturation point, and the iPad sales growth is being driven mostly by the less expensive Mini line, rather than a drop in Mac sales of 17%.