Where do you purchase your macs in the UK for best price please (first mac purchase)?

poppetpoppet
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Hi there,



Can anyone tell me where they purchase there mac's from in the UK. I am looking to get an imac and my husband a macbook. We were thinking of waiting until after MWSF to see if there was going to be updated software (ilife 07) and if the imac was going to be updated. I am guessing the macbook won't be as it has only just been updated but I have heard rummors about the shell of the imac changing. I have also been hanging out for a video ipod but I won't purchase until the screen size is bigger.



My husband is a student so the prices via the student eduction part of Apple are pretty good but I have been flicking around and just wondered where everyone else was shopping for deals.



This is my first mac purchase so any advice on how to get the best deal would be appreciated.



I will be using my mac for internet, word processing, organising photos, a bit of imovie and music. I will be interested in using it as a TV via a usb stick also. What sort of spec do I need for the imac. Are there any upgrades I should think about. My PC at the moment can't handle anything and as soon as I try and do things with multiple applications it crashes which really bugs the hell out of me.



Thanks for any responses.



From a new mac fan that hasn't even got one yet!!

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 9
    officerdigbyofficerdigby Posts: 343member
    iMac and MacBook both recently updated.



    Maybe refurb at Apple store is good bet but I haven't spotted the new C2D's on there yet!



    Edit: Student deals! Just buy everything new on Student deals. It's like 16-20% right?
  • Reply 2 of 9
    chrisdamacmanchrisdamacman Posts: 180member
    student discount on most things is 11%. I know, i am a student!
  • Reply 3 of 9
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    For brand new, non-refurbished machines, you won't beat the Apple-direct education deals. If your husband is a student at university, make sure you use the "higher education" store (the second link found at this page (the one that says (You can only access the above link from your Institution's network) below it)) not only are the discounts greater than at the "standard" education store, all new computer hardware comes with a free 3 year standard warranty.



    P.S. I'd agree that it's worth a wait till after MWSF



    P.P.S. for your needs, Either the 1.83 GHz or 2.0 GHz iMac (both bumped to 2 GB of RAM) is all you need. The bottom-end one will suit your needs just fine right now, but the next one up is much more "future-proof" - it's the one I would go for.
  • Reply 4 of 9
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,326moderator
    I am friendly with a local reseller who can get me slightly better deals on Macs and I've tried another reseller that was similar. Generally they might leave in the extra Ram that Apple would take out e.g when the Macbooks were 512MB Ram, they'd take out 256MB and put in a 1GB leaving you with 1.25GB whereas Apple would give you 1GB. Overall, I'd say it's not worth bothering because for example in that case, having matched memory is better anyway. Just order through Apple.
  • Reply 5 of 9
    poppetpoppet Posts: 90member
    Mr H,



    Do you know if I can get the same discount by calling. My husband doesn't use the computers at Uni. When I call up they do give me more discount than the first link on that page but warranties for 3 years are £58 (still pretty good though).



    Thanks for everyones help.



    J
  • Reply 6 of 9
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Poppet


    Do you know if I can get the same discount by calling.



    I don't know. From what you said, I doubt it.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Poppet


    My husband doesn't use the computers at Uni.



    I'm sure that he will find the effort of obtaining a university username/password (if he hasn't already been given one) and then going to the university library to use a computer to be worthwhile.
  • Reply 7 of 9
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Poppet


    When I call up they do give me more discount than the first link on that page but warranties for 3 years are £58 (still pretty good though).



    Oops, just realised I didn't read your post properly. What prices are they quoting you? I can check for you if they are the full higher education discounts.



    On the warranty front, the 3 years that are included as standard under higher ed. purchases are not full AppleCare warranties. AppleCare includes 3 years of free telephone support, but the warranties are for parts and labour only to fix a problem. The £58 you were quoted was probably to "uplift" the included 3 year warranty to full AppleCare.
  • Reply 8 of 9
    poppetpoppet Posts: 90member
    This is the quote I got



    EMEA CC-HE contract uplift iMac/eMac \tS2365 \t1 \t£ 50.00

    iMac, 20-inch, 2.16GHz Intel Core Duo \tMA589 \t1 \t£ 748.00

    MacBook (white) 13.3-inch 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo \tCustom \t1 £716.58

    -1GB 667 DDR2 - 2x512MB SO-DIMMs \t065-6709 \t\t\t

    -2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo \t065-6698 \t\t\t

    -Country kit \t065-6708 \t\t\t

    -SuperDrive 6x (DVD+R DL/DVD RW/CD-RW) \t065-6704 \t\t\t

    -120GB Serial ATA drive (5400rpm) \t065-6710 \t\t\t

    -Keyboard & Mac OS \t065-6707 \t\t\t

    Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac Student &Teacher Edition \tT9188 \t1 \t£ 85.06

    EMEA CC-HE contract uplift iBook \tS2364 \t1 \t£ 50.00

    \t \t \t \t

    \t

    The Total Price ex VAT is \t£ 1649.64

    The Total Price inc VAT is \t£ 1938.3



    Your help is much appreciated.



    Do you know the difference between the two warranties and what would you recommend?



    Cheers



    J



    prices that are listed are ex vat.
  • Reply 9 of 9
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Poppet


    This is the quote I got



    EMEA CC-HE contract uplift iMac/eMac \tS2365 \t1 \t£ 50.00

    iMac, 20-inch, 2.16GHz Intel Core Duo \tMA589 \t1 \t£ 748.00

    MacBook (white) 13.3-inch 2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo \tCustom \t1 £716.58

    -1GB 667 DDR2 - 2x512MB SO-DIMMs \t065-6709 \t\t\t

    -2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo \t065-6698 \t\t\t

    -Country kit \t065-6708 \t\t\t

    -SuperDrive 6x (DVD+R DL/DVD RW/CD-RW) \t065-6704 \t\t\t

    -120GB Serial ATA drive (5400rpm) \t065-6710 \t\t\t

    -Keyboard & Mac OS \t065-6707 \t\t\t

    Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac Student &Teacher Edition \tT9188 \t1 \t£ 85.06

    EMEA CC-HE contract uplift iBook \tS2364 \t1 \t£ 50.00



    Yes, those are the full higher ed. discounts. Whether the phone support is worth it or not, is up to you. I suppose that if you are a Mac novice it may be worth it, but the standard 90 days telephone support may be sufficient.
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