Non-Retina MacBook Pros see $100 price drop for education buyers

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Apple on Thursday dropped the education buyer price for its default configuration non-Retina MacBook Pros by an additional $100, and customers can now pick up the notebooks starting at under $1,000.

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The Apple Store for Education changed its pricing on Thursday, dropping an additional $100 off the regular cost of a 2.5-gigahertz 13-inch MacBook Pro. That model now sells for $999, or $200 below the retail cost for non-educational customers.

The 2.9-gigahertz MacBook Pro is also available for $200 off retail, starting at $1,299. The discount, so far, applies only to Apple's non-Retina MacBook Pro models.

The 2.5-gigahertz model has an Intel Core i5 processor that can Turbo Boos up to 3.1GHz. It also comes with 4 gigabytes of RAM, a 500-gigabyte 5400rpm hard drive, an Intel HD Graphics 4000 chip, and a 7-hour battery life.

The 2.9-gigahertz model has a Core i7 chip that can Turbo Boost up to 3.6-gigahertz, 8 gigabytes of RAM, and a 750-gigabyte hard drive.

Thursday also saw Apple adding a new iPod touch model to its lineup of iOS devices. The new model is a more stripped-down version, as it does not have a rear-facing camera, and it replaces the now-discontinued fourth-generation iPod touch.

Apple's latest discounts are meant only for educational customers, but traditional shoppers can turn to the AppleInsider Mac Price Guide, which features aggressive discounts from Apple-authorized resellers. MacMall and B&H also offer discounts on Macs purchased with AppleCare extended warranties.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 9
    cash907cash907 Posts: 893member
    Hope this means they are cleaning out stock so the non retina MBP line can be completely replaced by the rMBP save for the base model for education store.
  • Reply 2 of 9
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,808member


    Very nice...I'm organizing a lab replacement now from our white unibody MacBooks. I would really like to have 13" MacBook Pros. For educational use, the MacBook Air doesn't cut it without a wired connection. Wireless isn't always the greatest thing in the world and IMO shouldn't be used as the main way of connecting to the network. There are too many variables to make it work shaky at times. 

  • Reply 3 of 9

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by macxpress View Post


    Very nice...I'm organizing a lab replacement now from our white unibody MacBooks. I would really like to have 13" MacBook Pros. For educational use, the MacBook Air doesn't cut it without a wired connection. Wireless isn't always the greatest thing in the world and IMO shouldn't be used as the main way of connecting to the network. There are too many variables to make it work shaky at times. 



     


    Haswell MBP's are just around the corner along with 802.11ac wifi. But you probably won't get these kind of deals.

  • Reply 4 of 9
    hmmhmm Posts: 3,405member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Cash907 View Post



    Hope this means they are cleaning out stock so the non retina MBP line can be completely replaced by the rMBP save for the base model for education store.




    Given how quickly Apple turns over their inventory, I doubt that is a problem, especially on one of the less expensive models. Aside from that, they have offered 13" models at $1000 before. They just weren't post unibody 13" models.

  • Reply 5 of 9
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,384member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Cash907 View Post



    Hope this means they are cleaning out stock so the non retina MBP line can be completely replaced by the rMBP save for the base model for education store.


     


    Yup. They need to do this @ WWDC. Update Retina MBPs, maybe drop the price just a bit more, and eliminate older MBP models. I believe they always planned to do this, keeping the older models was simply a price stop-gap. I doubt Apple is comfortable with how messy it is now, the older style needs to go. Pushing sales of the retina models and economies of scale will also help bring down the price. 

  • Reply 6 of 9
    jollypauljollypaul Posts: 328member


    That's still too much. I can buy a Dell Persperon for $3.50 (tree-fiddy), and that comes with Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer trading cards. Collect them all!

  • Reply 7 of 9
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    cash907 wrote: »
    Hope this means they are cleaning out stock so the non retina MBP line can be completely replaced by the rMBP save for the base model for education store.

    It could be that or it could be that Apple is reading the playing field for an acroos the board price cut due to flagging sales. I suspect that Apple is having a hard time moving laptops lately.
  • Reply 8 of 9
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,808member


    This is also the start of the school purchasing season...at least in my area it is. Everyone is planning on their purchases for the next school year so they can be ordered, and deployed before the first day of school. Its perfect timing for most.

  • Reply 9 of 9
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,808member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by GadgetCanadaV2 View Post


     


    Haswell MBP's are just around the corner along with 802.11ac wifi. But you probably won't get these kind of deals.



     


     I simply don't want to rely on wireless only and don't want to have to buy 30 thunderbolt to gigabit ethernet adapters and keep track of them if we were to get the MacBook Air. We can't purchase anything until July 1st which is the start of the next school year. 

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