SaudiMac Saudi Apple Macintosh Users
Rami Kayyali has compiled and compared the prices of products in the newly launched UAE Apple Store with the prices at the Apple US Store and Saudi Arabia’s distributors. The results are interesting even though the comparison does not include taxes nor custom rates.
UAE Apple Store vs Saudi Arabia Prices
By comparing UAE Apple Online Store with Arab Computers and iPhone from Mobily, STC we notice:
• UAE iPhone is %3.5 cheaper
• Saudi iPod is about %10 cheaper
• iPad 2 in Saudi is %2 cheaper except for some models
• MacBook Pro in Saudi is cheaper by 4-10%
• MacBook Air in Saudi is cheaper by 1-6% except the highest model which is more expensive by 2%
• iMac is cheaper in Saudi by 2%
UAE Apple Store vs USA Apple Store
Notes from comparing the UAE Online Apple Store with the United States Apple Store:
• All Macs: MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, iMac, Mac Pro are 20% more expensive in the UAE
• iPad 2 in UAE is more expensive by 13%
• iPhone 4 is cheaper in UAE by 3%
• iPods in UAE are more expensive by 16%
We notice that the iPhone 4 is the only Apple product priced less in the UAE than the US. Apple should reduce the prices based on the local market.
One more note: iPad 2, iPhone 4 and iPod touch 4 sold at the UAE Apple Store will end with model number AE so FaceTime (and possible iMessage) will be disabled.
The full spreadsheet is available on Google Docs.
You can find the author of this post on twitter: @khaled.
Arabic version of this post on SaudiMac Arabic Edition.
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but how do these prices compare to the other online stores, like the UK store, and the other European stores. The US store is the cheapest, so I guess at least the prices should be the same as the authorised distributors prices or maybe less
my friend this comparison does not make any sense !!!
if you want to compare to the price in US then you should consider the sales tax which is at the average of 10%
moreover; these prices of KSA or not correct at all !!! where can I get these prices ??? go to i-weaver and see how they double or sometimes triple the price !!!
I’m an old mac user and I have never bought any thing from a local distributor!!! it’s been always way cheaper for me to buy from US, pay tax and shipping; yet I’m saving at least 25% !!!
I would use some realistic prices for the comparison
then how come the iPhone is the only exception? why is it the only item less in the UAE than the US?
my friend this comparison does not make any sense !!!
if you want to compare to the price in US then you should consider the sales tax which is at the average of 10%
moreover; these prices of KSA or not correct at all !!! where can I get these prices ??? go to i-weaver and see how they double or sometimes triple the price !!!
I’m an old mac user and I have never bought any thing from a local distributor!!! it’s been always way cheaper for me to buy from US, pay tax and shipping; yet I’m saving at least 25% !!!
I would use some realistic prices for the comparison
US sales taxes must be factored in to give a better comparison. Once that’s done the difference could be cut in half. Another thing to consider, if Apple are shipping these direct from the factory to the buyer, it’s natural to cost more than shipping it to the US because there isn’t and will never be the same volume of shipments to the UAE as there are to the US.
Hussain’s got a point… if any of you are in retail, the idea of comparing us to the US is silly. That’s their HQ… primary customers… I love it when people compare to the US. to start off with, the Middle East probably doesnt even fall under the US, it falls under Europe. So you should compare to the UK. Take into account taxes.. then for those that talk of international prices, what about shipping, or the cost of your plane ticket to go and get this cheaper device.
At the end of the day, you compare with all this in mind. and as expensive as these places are, there are still some that do it right. Istyle in Dubai, I.ZONE in Saudi, iSpot is OK in Qatar… at least we have companies trying to do right by us. i know with my business, its impossible to always offer the pricing you want, cause some factors simply dont allow for it like the availability of a certain fabric for a shirt…. eg. when stock is an issue, its hardly a stores fault, its because its suppliers arent providing them with enough! BASIC Math, if something is selling, you want to sell more right??? so it’s not always the Apple stores here that dont do well, but also the little attention APPLE gives the region…
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guy’s i need some help. im planning on buying a 2012 13″ macbook pro from saudi but right now all they have is the american keyboard macbook’s. these don’t come with arabic keys on them, so what they do is replace them. but the british keyboards do come with arabic, and so the macbook is never touched except maybe from the distributor ( Arab computers Øاسبات العرب ).
My question is, if i buy the “american” keyboard macbook, would i face any problems in the futer due to the fact that it is an american machine. thank’s for the reply in advance.