Apple Macbook - To Buy Here In The Uk? Or In Thailand?

[glasshock]

Ok .. may seem like a stupid question to some of you but I could do with a little help. I'd like to upgrade my laptop and feel that Apple are making huge leaps forward now........so I'm going to grab myself an Apple Macbook. Now, should I buy here in the UK (base model £699.99) or wait until we move to Thailand in a couple of weeks time.

Anyone know if there are savings to be made with this item in LOS? Are you using one yourself and purchased it there....?

Your advice, yet again oh knowledgeable ones, would be much appreciated

Ta.........

[Pepe']

Ok .. may seem like a stupid question to some of you but I could do with a little help. I'd like to upgrade my laptop and feel that Apple are making huge leaps forward now........so I'm going to grab myself an Apple Macbook. Now, should I buy here in the UK (base model £699.99) or wait until we move to Thailand in a couple of weeks time.

Anyone know if there are savings to be made with this item in LOS? Are you using one yourself and purchased it there....?

Your advice, yet again oh knowledgeable ones, would be much appreciated

Ta.........

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Never ever never but a laptop in LOS.

You will always pay much much more than you would at home...

[Thaifan2]

I disagree with the above .The prices i have seen for Laptops in Thailand can be cheaper than in the UK and Ireland .Probably not cheaper than the US though .Make sure that they offer an international warranty .Try Pantip Plaza in Bangkok ,or Tukcom in Pattaya .Check out this Thai site Pattaya2u

[mark lamai]

dunno about UK,

i bought a macBook pro (Siam Centre) 4 months ago and it was about the same as in Aus.

same seems to apply to almost all cameras, electronics etc.

I have been a mac user for a long time,

personally I think they are making huge leaps backwards.

trying to copy the windows user model where the computer does everything for you coz it assumes you are stupid.

boy, I hate those programs starting with "i"

the OS is fairly stable.

and you have the option to run windows under emulation program or from a boot choice.

be aware that there are some bugs in the new OS 10.5 and Quicktime 7.3,

depending what work you do this may be no problem or a very big problem (eg. video).

the MBP 17" 2.66GHz i bought is a nice machine,

maybe the best they have made yet.

Warranty is world wide and i have found the Apple service centre in Bangkok to very very good.

i still hate windows far more than mac, but they finally made an OS that kinda works (XP SP2)

[glasshock]

dunno about UK,

i bought a macBook pro (Siam Centre) 4 months ago and it was about the same as in Aus.

same seems to apply to almost all cameras, electronics etc.

I have been a mac user for a long time,

personally I think they are making huge leaps backwards.

trying to copy the windows user model where the computer does everything for you coz it assumes you are stupid.

boy, I hate those programs starting with "i"

the OS is fairly stable.

and you have the option to run windows under emulation program or from a boot choice.

be aware that there are some bugs in the new OS 10.5 and Quicktime 7.3,

depending what work you do this may be no problem or a very big problem (eg. video).

the MBP 17" 2.66GHz i bought is a nice machine,

maybe the best they have made yet.

Warranty is world wide and i have found the Apple service centre in Bangkok to very very good.

i still hate windows far more than mac, but they finally made an OS that kinda works (XP SP2)

I just upgraded to Vista Business from XP Pro .... huge mistake!! I just cant wait for the service pack to arrive but ......When????

I shall give the Mac a try.

Thanks for the advice guys.

[Pepe']

I disagree with the above .The prices i have seen for Laptops in Thailand can be cheaper than in the UK and Ireland .Probably not cheaper than the US though .Make sure that they offer an international warranty .Try Pantip Plaza in Bangkok ,or Tukcom in Pattaya .Check out this Thai site Pattaya2u

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Reeeaaaallllyyyy...

[curber]

I bought a laptop in Hong Kong a couple years ago....they assured me it had an international warranty...I had to have it repaired in Canada ...they fixed it and charged me($246.70 CAD) and told me to send the receipt to an address in Hong Kong to get reimbursed for charges.This was all fine I did get my money....took almost a year but I was paid.....I don`t think I saved much at all on the buying price...I know not enough to put up with the hassle

[sutnyod]

Hi,

just bought my MacBook Pro one week ago and it was 75,900 THB. The normal Macbook was in the range of 57,000 if I remember correctly. I am from Euro-land, so for me the present exchange rate meant huge savings.

Cheers

[PadThaiGuy]

Most consumer electronics have a hefty import tax in Thailand.

Generally cheaper back home.

Avoid the clowns at Siam Discovery Apple store. Some bad reports regarding customer service.

If you do buy in Thailand I recommend the Apple shop in Fortune Mall.

[sutnyod]

If you do buy in Thailand I recommend the Apple shop in Fortune Mall.

Yep. That's where I bought mine. Actually there are two Apple stores in Fortune. After I had checked the prices everywhere and, surprise, surprise, they were the same, I chose the shop with the friendliest and most knowledgeable service. (Checked also Siam and Esplanade, both hopeless!!!!)

[Scott]

I bought a new laptop in Thailand. My Thai friend said that since I was going to the US in a couple of months, I should wait and get it there. He was right. They were significantly cheaper in the states. Nonetheless, I needed it when I was still here, thus the purchase here.

[zorro1]

I bought a new laptop in Thailand. My Thai friend said that since I was going to the US in a couple of months, I should wait and get it there. He was right. They were significantly cheaper in the states. Nonetheless, I needed it when I was still here, thus the purchase here.

A couple of months in laptop or cell phone land is a long time. If there is a new model about to be released the retailers will start to heavily discount the current model

[bendix]

Ok .. may seem like a stupid question to some of you but I could do with a little help. I'd like to upgrade my laptop and feel that Apple are making huge leaps forward now........so I'm going to grab myself an Apple Macbook. Now, should I buy here in the UK (base model £699.99) or wait until we move to Thailand in a couple of weeks time.

Anyone know if there are savings to be made with this item in LOS? Are you using one yourself and purchased it there....?

Your advice, yet again oh knowledgeable ones, would be much appreciated

Ta.........

------------------

Never ever never but a laptop in LOS.

You will always pay much much more than you would at home...

More Thai wisdom from the man who lives in San Diego.

The UK base price for the macbook 2gh model is 699 quid which at today's exchange rate is Th 48930.

The same model in Thailand retails for Th 44,565 including VAT. www.login.co.th

Of course, why let facts get in the way of ignorance?

[bendix]

Ignorant only of the pricing practices on Apple products in Bangkok, my dear fellow, that's all.

How could you know otherwise; you live on the other side of the world. It's not your fault.

The OP asked for pricing on a particular product here in Thailand. You came back with a sweeping generalisation but no information. I thought it would be much more helpful to the chap if I told him the facts so he can make an informed decision.

[PadThaiGuy]

Of course, why let facts get in the way of ignorance?

Our resident English Hooligan just trying to derail another thread and start another foodfight.

[Pepe']

Of course, why let facts get in the way of ignorance?

Our resident English Hooligan just trying to derail another thread and start another foodfight.

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I prefer Italian food...

[percy2]

The other thing to remember is that if arriving as a tourist you should get 7% back as you leave.

Often the cheapest place to buy things is the country that has the highest level of VAT.

Cheers

[bendix]

Of course, why let facts get in the way of ignorance?

Our resident English Hooligan just trying to derail another thread and start another foodfight.

By providing useful facts so the OP can make his buying decision?

If so, I plead guilty and implore the moderators to ban me.

[dog412]

i would purchase in the U.K., that way you're sure to get what you pay for. my trust factor here is not that high when it comes to computer buys. way too many opened packages and substitutions.

[Tywais]

That's enough of the off-topic banter and bickering gentlemen.

A friend here just bought a MacBook for 57,000 Baht even though he is moving to work in Singapore next month. So I would assume it was because the price was equitable or better then there.

[Pepe']

i would purchase in the U.K., that way you're sure to get what you pay for. my trust factor here is not that high when it comes to computer buys. way too many opened packages and substitutions.

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I had that in the back of my mind as well as another limiting factor to never do a major purchase in Thailand unless there really was no other choice.

It surprising to me that some have had "luck" with both the purchase and the service as well...

[bendix]

Well, off topic to an extent, but I have bought both an iMac G5 and my little 12inch Powerbook G4 in Thailand and I've never had any issues with the quality or service. Both were bought from Apple dealers in Bangkok. The iMac has never needed any servicing at all; the Powerbook needed a new battery as a result of a worldwide battery recall on that particular model. I took it into their service centre in Siam Discovery and it was returned to me within days, good as new.

[zorro1]

Dont know about apple but I do know that most of the fully loaded laptops purchased at pantip are loaded with burnt softwear and not the original

[bendix]

Why is why I'd never buy at pantip. Come on - it's hardly the most reliable place in the world. You get what you pay for. It's world renowned as a knock-off centre.

Fine for buying a fake copy of the latest dvd or games, but would you seriously invest big dollars in a state of the art machine from there?

[meom]

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I had that in the back of my mind as well as another limiting factor to never do a major purchase in Thailand unless there really was no other choice.

It surprising to me that some have had "luck" with both the purchase and the service as well...

I feel quite lucky with my wife, thank you

[nidge]

I bought my macbook pro at Phantip 1 year ago. It had original software and works perfectly. It cost me approx 75000 baht and then i got the VAT returned when i left the country for work. If you can buy any computer in the UK cheaper than in thailand it was probably nicked!

I have actually bought 3 laptops from phantip in the last few years and never had any problems other than the pirate versions of windows.

[A_Traveller]

Just a small point here, taking the 699 GBP price quoted by the OP, this equates to 594.89 GBP {after removing the 17% VAT}, which may be reclaimable for the OP. To endeavour to create a like for like calculation, add 7% to recreate the Thai VAT position which gives 636.53 GBP equating to 40,502 THB {off-shore exchange rate} or 44,426 THB {Thailand on-shore rate}.

Regards

PS Just came across a website offering the machine at 44,565 THB.

PPS In Singapore a site is showing the machine at 1788 SGD which equates to 38,200 THB {off-shore rate}.

Edited November 30, 2007 by A_Traveller

[bendix]

Just a small point here, taking the 699 GBP price quoted by the OP, this equates to 594.89 GBP {after removing the 17% VAT}, which may be reclaimable for the OP. To endeavour to create a like for like calculation, add 7% to recreate the Thai VAT position which gives 636.53 GBP equating to 40,502 THB {off-shore exchange rate} or 44,426 THB {Thailand on-shore rate}.

Regards

PS Just came across a website offering the machine at 44,565 THB.

PPS In Singapore a site is showing the machine at 1788 SGD which equates to 38,200 THB {off-shore rate}.

1) Why would the OP be able to claim VAT back from a UK-purchased machine? As a Brit - even leaving the country to live overseas - he would pay 699 GBP.

2) Why would he had 7% to the Thai VAT position? As a purchaser in Thailand, he would be paying the Thai price with the Thai VAT.

You're playing with numbers and it doesnt stack up.

Interesting on the Singapore price though, IF he was coming to Thailand via Singapore because in addition to the lower price he'd also get the Singapore tax deducted when he left the country.

Edited November 30, 2007 by bendix

[dog412]

for what it's worth... u.k=699 incl. vat. singapore=1788S$ incl. gst... u.s.=1099$ not incl. state tax if applicable. thailand= 43,500 not incl. 7% vat. as a aside, U.K., U.S., Sing., all direct from Apple store. apple store does not exist in Thailand.

Edited November 30, 2007 by dog412

[A_Traveller]

1) Why would the OP be able to claim VAT back from a UK-purchased machine? As a Brit - even leaving the country to live overseas - he would pay 699 GBP. The poster may be VAT registered and therefore able to claim it back.

2) Why would he had 7% to the Thai VAT position? As a purchaser in Thailand, he would be paying the Thai price with the Thai VAT.had Pardon? VAT is calculated on base price therefore to create a level playing field for comparison I used the non-vat price in the UK, since that is where the OP is.

You're playing with numbers and it doesnt stack up.Yes it does, since the OP is in the UK the difference between the on-shore and offshore rates are relevant. I'm trying to answer the original question. Please reread.

Interesting on the Singapore price though, IF he was coming to Thailand via Singapore because in addition to the lower price he'd also get the Singapore tax deducted when he left the country.Correct

Regards