Apple's profit margin on Mac minis slimmer than usual

1567810

Comments

  • Reply 181 of 202
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    Rewording: He listed the US price AFTER the exchange rate conversion was applied.



    Of course, it could not be done any other way. Still doesn't make any sense.



    I hear this all the time when the US dollar is weak. People in other countries start crying about how much more expensive it is to buy Apple products in their country when in reality the price hasn't changed here or there. What has changed is the exchange rate.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 182 of 202
    brucepbrucep Posts: 2,823member
    every quote is a responsce to teckstud



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by paxman View Post


    Yes, and it has always been a very 'low end' term and as such says more about the person using it than the person it is pointed at. Its a broad gibe intended to offend. It generalizes stupidly. It is juvenile. I really don't think it ever did have a finer point. Why else would gender come into a debate where you wish to point out that somebody is unreasonably / blindly biased?



    AND it made this page very boring and completely off topic to read .

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by penchanted View Post


    This is too funny coming from the same person who, just a couple of days ago, chided another poster about sourcing from Wikipedia:



    http://forums.appleinsider.com/showp...6&postcount=74



    This guy some how pushes all your buttons ,

    Topic after topic you all line up to take a shot at this guy .



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mrochester View Post


    Yeah this really bugs me too. It's funny the number of people who said that auto-focus cameras and video were so not needed on the iPhone, yet they were all falling over themselves to buy the 3GS when it came out to have an auto-focus camera and video. It cracks me up that whatever product Apple currently sells is the absolute pinnacle of excellence, with all the features that anyone would ever need, at a price that's perfectly justifiable. This view then conveniently changes as soon as Apple announces their next product. I've posted in and observed the AppleInsider forum for a long while now, and it's truely like watching a herd of sheep following each other around. It's sad really, as it's like these people simply don't have a mind of their own.



    Very nice normal people turned into people who are fooled over and over . After hundreds of his unique style POSTS you would think that some of us would learn he will always say something upsetting.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    And herein lies the trouble. You're using "someone" without being specific, allowing you to create an aggregate "fanboy" by cherry picking (or simply misrepresenting) opinions from multiple posters on multiple topics over long periods of time, as if each Apple user must be held responsible for and remain consistent with every other Apple user or be revealed as a fanboy hypocrite.



    This is how it generally works the internet over-- anyone expressing satisfaction with anything Apple does (or failing to belittle them or not getting excited about something Microsoft has done) is immediately branded a "fanboy" because "they" or "them" or "Apple users" or "people like that" have said something else, somewhere else, some other time.



    The crux seems to be developing an opinion about Apple users in general which is then used to castigate each Apple user in particular, which is, not to put too fine a point on it, bullshit.



    So if you read any other tech blog's comments, you'll see, over and over again, that when someone make a mild remark expressing support of Apple they are immediately met with a hail of "Here we go!" and "The fanboys are rushing to their master Jobs's defense!" and "Typical fanboy LOL stop blowing Steve and get a clue LOL!"



    Really, it's pretty tiresome and at this point seems to be little more than an "acceptable" outlet for the kind of tribal animosities that might otherwise get directed toward race or religion. If you take a look at the level of vitriol that gets slung around you have to assume that the "death to fanboy" brigade are simply excitable bigots who can't get it up for the old standbys.



    So unless you can give us some specifics about specific posters insisting that, say, the iPhone doesn't and never will need MMS, and those same posters immediately declaring the inclusion of MMS on the iPhone some kind of Apple triumph, you're just blowing smoke out of your ass.





    I ilke him a lot and i guess we all do. His quick one liners crack me up .

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    Good try. No -I'm not - I don't have time to directly look for all these quotes just to appease your denial. You know they exist- yet want to conitinually play this game of tit for tat. I have a life. Other's have agreed with me - it is a totally recognizable trait.

    Enough said.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addabox View Post


    AKA "my prejudice is shared by others so why should I make any effort to discern if it's fair"?



    It's easy to make any group out as wrong if you don't have to deal in particulars. Just start with "you know how they are" and use each individual example as "proof" that "they" are indeed like that.



    Since individual people express a very broad range of opinions and behaviors, you'll never lack for "evidence". You will, however, be a bigoted asshole.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by penchanted View Post


    That definition comes from the Dictionary application - you know, the one included with every Macintosh computer. You can also find the definition in the online Merriam-Webster disctionary. Your explanation sounds duplicitous to me but I am sure you will find some other reason why it is appropriate for you to source from Wikipedia yet inappropriate for others.



    By the way, I am no fan of yours. You seem to live in a world where a half-full glass is almost empty. I try to avoid people like that.



    For better or worse, I am blessed with excellent memory and am able to recall much of what I read from here or elsewhere. Of course, you oversized sense of self has once again led you to the wrong conclusion.



    \\

    Sorry i ran out of things to say.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tt92618 View Post


    Maybe Apple should elect you to the board so you can set them all straight, eh Teckstud?



    Here is the deal: Manufacturers design, produce, and market a product, and the consumer (you) decides whether or not to buy the product at the price point offered.



    It doesn't seem like anyone forced you to buy a mac, or an iPhone, or any other Apple product for that matter. So, whining and complaining because you think the evil Apple overlords have abused you by charging too much is just silly (and that is the nice way of saying it.)



    Why don't you just go buy an $800 Dell and go hang out on winSuperSite? The way you carry on, it seems like that would be more palatable for all of us.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tt92618 View Post


    This is all a bunch of garbage. Your definition of fan boy amounts to this: "anyone who disagrees with you." As a matter of fact, that is how you consistently use the term: whenever someone doesn't agree with whatever negative effluent you have to spill out at the particular time.



    You don't seem to get the fact that you, mr. teckstud, are not the prototype upon which all humanity is based, and therefor your particular interests or desires in a product do not act as the reference model for what every product designed by anyone ought to be. Furthermore, you interpret something like the removal of firewire, and then its addition again, as acknowledgment of a mistake, when you don't have a clue as to what drove those choices. You don't know if it was a costing decision, a space consideration, or whatever. Heck, maybe they were in fact mistakes. Maybe they misjudged the market, realized the gaffe, and corrected. Who the heck actually cares? The problem with you is that your belief is that anything Apple does which contradicts your own personal views and tastes is a mistake. And of course, anyone who doesn't see it that way is a 'fan boy'.



     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 183 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dr Millmoss View Post


    Of course, it could not be done any other way. Still doesn't make any sense.



    I hear this all the time when the US dollar is weak. People in other countries start crying about how much more expensive it is to buy Apple products in their country when in reality the price hasn't changed here or there. What has changed is the exchange rate.



    His point, whether valid or not, is that the US Mac Mini costs $599 USD and the Australian Mac Mini costs ~$840 USD. Of course, he?s not considering the cost differences involved between that AU price and the US price, but those aspects have not been addressed in this micro-thread.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 184 of 202
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dr Millmoss View Post


    So you can convert from Australian Dollars to US Dollars without an exchange rate?



    You learn something new around here every day.



    You need to read things correctly...
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 185 of 202
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    His point, whether valid or not, is that the US Mac Mini costs $599 USD and the Australian Mac Mini costs ~$840 USD. Of course, he?s not considering the cost differences involved between that AU price and the US price, but those aspects have not been addressed in this micro-thread.



    But those cost differences don't seem to make any sense. The Mac Mini in NZ before tax is around $800 USD, but it I order it from the Apple Store, the billing is done by another Apple country, and it is shipped from outside NZ.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 186 of 202
    minderbinderminderbinder Posts: 1,703member
    "Smaller" and "more attractive". Awesome, those are two of the LEAST important features people want in a desktop computer.



    This article spells out exactly how Apple dropped the ball on this model. The choice of notebook components increases Apple's build cost (I'd argue unnecessarily) - we've always known that it has made them uncompetitive on the low end, but some people argued that the mini's uncompetitive price (and the reason Apple can't make a midtower) was because they needed to maintain a certain profit margin. This article shows that is wrong - if they would dump the mini they could probably make a box that is WAY more price competitive AND bump their profit margins a bit as well.



    So apple, when are you finally going to admit that the mini was a miscalculation and finally dump it in favor of a cheaper, more expandable, probably more PROFITABLE machine based on desktop parts?
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 187 of 202
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    His point, whether valid or not, is that the US Mac Mini costs $599 USD and the Australian Mac Mini costs ~$840 USD. Of course, he?s not considering the cost differences involved between that AU price and the US price, but those aspects have not been addressed in this micro-thread.



    The point I'm making is that it makes no sense to quote Australian prices in US dollars. Australians neither earn nor spend US dollars. If they want to spend their Australian dollars and enjoy the strength of their currency, they need to get themselves on an airplane to the US, where they will find the entire country on sale. Not only will Apple products be cheaper to them, but so will hotels, food, rental cars, you name it.



    If that's not understood, then perhaps a little arithmetic will help. The Australian dollar price of a Mac mini divided by the US dollar price results an exchange rate of $1.75 -- which it happens is very close to where the actual exchange rate was a few months ago, before the US dollar's recent collapse. So what people in Australia are complaining about is the current strength of their currency not being translated immediately into deep discounts on imported products. Which, since it doesn't happen very often at all, is a strange thing to get worked up about.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 188 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfanning View Post


    But those cost differences don't seem to make any sense. The Mac Mini in NZ before tax is around $800 USD, but it I order it from the Apple Store, the billing is done by another Apple country, and it is shipped from outside NZ.



    What cost differences are considering? The number of units sold that require the AU power supply compared to the US power supply? Keyboard variances for a relatively small number of units? Packaging for a relatively small number of units compared to the US? Import tax for a foreign made product? Any VAT? Retesting fees of per unit fees for an electronic device for AU? Any minor or stupid thing that needs to be added or removed to accommodate AU laws?



    I don’t know if any of those actually apply or if they do, to what degree in which they would affect the price, or any additional ones my quick brainstorming has missed, but I don’t recall reading bout these differences.



    edit: Millhouse brings up a good point in post #188 about a variable that I didn’t mention above. What was the exchange rate when the prices of the Mac Mini were set in AU. Though that isn’t the only qualifier as a company still needs to make a judgment call as to whether the value of each relative coumntries dollar will change over time as they can’t very well change the prices daily.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 189 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dr Millmoss View Post


    The point I'm making is that it makes no sense to quote Australian prices in US dollars. Australians neither earn nor spend US dollars.



    So you find that whole idea of an exchange rate to be pointless?
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 190 of 202
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    So you find that whole idea of an exchange rate to be pointless?



    No, completely the opposite. The question puzzles me, if only because I just went through a lot of trouble to explain how that system works.



    BTW, Australian prices also include 10% VAT, so the current effective exchange rate on this product is closer $1.60. I wonder if Australians were complaining about paying too little when the exchange rate was higher than $1.60 only a few months ago. Something tells me not.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 191 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dr Millmoss View Post


    No, completely the opposite. The question puzzles me, if only because I just went through a lot of trouble to explain how that system works.



    You can?t have it both ways. Either we covert the currencies for comparison or we don?t convert and we make no comparison. We usually convert into USSD because that is the country in which Apple resides and all prices are based on.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 192 of 202
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    You can?t have it both ways. Either we covert the currencies for comparison or we don?t convert and we make no comparison. We usually convert into USSD because that is the country in which Apple resides and all prices are based on.



    I'm not trying to have it both ways. I'm not even sure there is a second way. As I said from the start, I think these exchange rate comparisons make no sense. They are at best theoretical, and they change constantly, and often rapidly. Every time the dollar has taken a dump recently I've heard people abroad complain about how much more they pay. But the price to them hasn't changed! All that has changed is the theoretical cost to them, if they were willing to exchange their currency come here and buy the product at that very moment in time. Next month it could be another story.



    The reality is, products are priced for the markets in which they are sold in the local currency. Exchange rates have little directly to do with this.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 193 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    I’m done with Economics 101.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 194 of 202
    tt92618tt92618 Posts: 444member
    Everyone calm down and be nice. We don't need to fight over whether we should talk about exchange rates. The real issue is, for a given market and currency, is the product priced attractively and without inexplicable markup?



    Complaining that the mac mini is cheaper in the US is a bit like whining because eggs are cheaper in Mexico. So what? This is only true because our money is worth more than Mexican currency, hence it gives us greater 'bang for the buck' there. Just because it is cheaper for us doesn't make the product actually cheaper in its locale. Australia is the reverse. Their currency is weaker than ours, and that is still the case. Is it a surprise, then, that a mac mini will cost more $USD in Australia? Yes, when AUD is worth less than the dollar, converting AUD to $ and then buying a mac in $ will yield a cost that is higher locally than the $ price in the US. No surprise there.



    What are we arguing about again? ;-)
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 195 of 202
    Yes, Apple is ripping us off re mac minis in New Zealand. The base profit IS huge and the difference between the two models is way beyond even excessive. Check this link for example:



    http://christiannews.co.nz/2009/macs...ini-a-rip-off/



    If they were offered at a reasonable price (yeah, lots of laptops with screen + keyboard + touchpad + extra mouldings are MUCH cheaper) I would certainly buy one or two. But at the present cost it looks at this stage like I will just upgrade to Windows 7 for our laptops.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 196 of 202
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    What cost differences are considering? The number of units sold that require the AU power supply compared to the US power supply? Keyboard variances for a relatively small number of units? Packaging for a relatively small number of units compared to the US? Import tax for a foreign made product? Any VAT? Retesting fees of per unit fees for an electronic device for AU? Any minor or stupid thing that needs to be added or removed to accommodate AU laws?



    The NZ Mac Mini, and the AU Mac Mini are exactly the same, the same non existant keyboard and mouse, they have the same power supply (well actually the whole world shares the same power supply since they are dual voltage, but the NZ model shares the same plug as the AU one), they are shipped from the same location, they are billed by the same Apple company, yet the NZ model is US$50 cheaper before tax than the AU model.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    edit: Millhouse brings up a good point in post #188 about a variable that I didn?t mention above. What was the exchange rate when the prices of the Mac Mini were set in AU. Though that isn?t the only qualifier as a company still needs to make a judgment call as to whether the value of each relative coumntries dollar will change over time as they can?t very well change the prices daily.



    As mentioned before, the exchange rate between the US$ and the rest of the world tanked (at the maximum) just over a year ago, the prices were not adjusted. The US$ rose shortly after this, and Apple introduced some new products, and raised prices in the non-US areas. They also mentioned this in one of there market reports, and they blamed the price increase on the weak US$ since they weren't making as much money.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 197 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfanning View Post


    ...yet the NZ model is US$50 cheaper before tax than the AU model.



    And you've accounted for every possible variable for the price difference?





    Quote:

    As mentioned before, the exchange rate between the US$ and the rest of the world tanked (at the maximum) just over a year ago, the prices were not adjusted.



    Are you inferring that that prices should be adjusted on a regular, perhaps daily, basis to accommodate the exchange rate differences? This is the Mac Mini we're talking about here. A machine that has not changed its look since the PPC days and tends to go a very long time between even basic spec upgrades. It's not exactly Apple's primary Mac focus.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 198 of 202
    jfanningjfanning Posts: 3,398member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tt92618 View Post


    Everyone calm down and be nice. We don't need to fight over whether we should talk about exchange rates. The real issue is, for a given market and currency, is the product priced attractively and without inexplicable markup?



    And I would say based on the Apple sales figures outside the US, are indicitive of the fact that they are not priced attractively.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tt92618 View Post


    Complaining that the mac mini is cheaper in the US is a bit like whining because eggs are cheaper in Mexico. So what? This is only true because our money is worth more than Mexican currency, hence it gives us greater 'bang for the buck' there. Just because it is cheaper for us doesn't make the product actually cheaper in its locale. Australia is the reverse. Their currency is weaker than ours, and that is still the case. Is it a surprise, then, that a mac mini will cost more $USD in Australia? Yes, when AUD is worth less than the dollar, converting AUD to $ and then buying a mac in $ will yield a cost that is higher locally than the $ price in the US. No surprise there.



    What are we arguing about again? ;-)



    Well based on your theory, the Euro, and UK Pound are both worth more than the US$, so the Apple products should be cheaper there.



    The weakness of the currency is not what is being argued with, it is the extra costs the Apple is sticking on after changing the currency. Since it is a non-Apple charge, we are not complaining about the additional of GST/VAT to the price, I think you will find that most people find it easier to see the tax inclusive price prior to buying something.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 199 of 202
    dr millmossdr millmoss Posts: 5,403member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfanning View Post


    As mentioned before, the exchange rate between the US$ and the rest of the world tanked (at the maximum) just over a year ago, the prices were not adjusted. The US$ rose shortly after this, and Apple introduced some new products, and raised prices in the non-US areas. They also mentioned this in one of there market reports, and they blamed the price increase on the weak US$ since they weren't making as much money.



    Currencies are constantly fluctuating, often by substantial amounts over short periods of time. The US dollar was weak for much of last year, strengthened quite a bit towards the end of the year and the beginning of this year, then started another slide early in the year.



    A weak US dollar is good for domestic exporters like Apple. They don't have to raise prices abroad because they get more bang in foreign currencies at the same prices. Many seem to believe that Apple should lower their prices to compensate for the weak dollar. Who does this? Nobody, really. But Apple should..?
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
  • Reply 200 of 202
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jfanning View Post


    The weakness of the currency is not what is being argued with, it is the extra costs the Apple is sticking on after changing the currency.



    But there are extra costs for Apple. It costs them more pre unit than it does for the US. That is a fact! Whether iit accounts for the full price difference is another story, but there are most costs involved and usually less product being sold that need to absorb those costs.
     0Likes 0Dislikes 0Informatives
Sign In or Register to comment.