on 31/7/03 3:30 PM, Mac Canada at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Date: Thu, 31 Jul 2003 12:57:11 -0600 > From: Daddy-O <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: Re: Canadian 'book and digital camera purchases > In-reply-to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Message-id: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > Posting this to the list from a request from another list, if anyone can > help (sorry Sedgwick, you have to reread this post). > > She wants to take this opportunity to enter the digital era. She would > like to get online either while still in SA or upon arriving back in > Canada (I don't know if it makes a difference to an online retailer > what country the order is placed from) and order stuff to be shipped to > her address in Canada. > > She is looking for new, refurbished or used equipment as follows: > > 1) iBook or PowerBook with cd burner
Sorry to hear about her experience there... I've been hearing some horror stories about South Africa (& crime) from SA expats in the past few months. If she buys new, and expects to get Canadian warrantee service, she's probably best off buying from a Canadian retailer, either from Apple Canada or one of the other on-line licenced Apple Canadian e-tailers (like www.macwarehouse.com). For someone who travels, as she undoubtedly does, I would urge extreme caution against buying an iCrapBook. They really feel quite flimsy compared to their professional counterparts and offer nothing more than cheaper parts for the cheaper price. Do not bother getting a used G4 PowerBook unless she is *really* tight on cash. They fetch an extraordinary premium compared to a new purchase and a new purchase comes with full warrantee and often better drives. She can get a 12" AlBook for $2250 CAD and a 15" TiBook for $2850 (check out http://www.apple.ca and click on the store tab for details). The cheapest iCrapBook with a DVD/CD-RW is $1850 and is hideously crippled. Why someone wouldn't spend the extra $400 to get a *much* better computer is beyond me (plus, the iBook only comes with 128 MB of RAM which effectively means it cannot run OS X). > 2) Nikon digital slr--D1 or D1X or D1H (or possibly one of the Kodak or > Fuji dslrs that use the Nikon mount). Apple is sometimes quite accommodating about warrantee service on items purchased in other countries (especially AppleCare... I've seen anecdotes suggesting that if you buy AppleCare for a machine you can use it anywhere Apple has AppleCare service). As for cameras, the retailers are extremely jealous of their turf and do their damndest to drive Canadian prices up by limiting supply so they are pretty picky about warrantee service and will throw up service barriers. > I've heard some online retailers charge prices that are higher than the > exchange rate would indicate and high shipping costs for Canadian > orders. Can those of you who are of Canadian residence recommend online > retailers that have fair prices and shipping and warranties for > Canadian orders. She has to act quickly because having this equipment > is essential to her livelihood. I'm posting this so that she can > benefit from the research and experience you already have. > > TIA" Re: higher prices -- not really for computers. More often than not Apple's official prices have been *lower* in Canada (by about $20-50 CAD... rounding) than in the US after conversion. I know for a while people were whining and pewling that Apple Canada was profiteering off the increase in the value of the Canadian dollar but they fixed the discrepancy fairly quickly. Today, the advantage is $1.27 for the Canadian side. Apple Canada is $2249 for a 12" AlBook and Apple USA is $1599 ($2250.27) and one must keep in mind that the Canadian dollar has been slipping against the US dollar so earlier in the month the advantage would've been quite a bit higher on the Canadian side. As for buying photographic equipment... she should buy from the place where she normally gets her equipment I imagine. They should have a web presence (Henrys comes to mind). Eric. -- Mac Canada is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Shop Canadian, visit Mantek Services <http://www.mantek.mb.ca> Low Prices That Will Keep YOU and Your MAC Smiling Educational discounts are now available Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> Mac Canada info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/mac-can.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/mac-canada%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Mac? Free email & more at Applelinks! http://www.applelinks.com
