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iPad UK Pricing Confirmed; Apple UK Tax Applied
The iPad will be available in the UK and eight other countries from 28 May 2010; both models will be available for pre-order on 10 May. Reader marcopolo007uk adds a note from iPad-Review.co.uk with pricing: "WiFi Models: 16GB / 32GB / 64GB — £429 / £499 / £599. 3G versions: 16GB / 32GB / 64GB — £529 / £599 / £699. These are a little higher than some had guessed... The Apple Tax stings the UK consumer again." At the current exchange rate, these prices are right around 150% of those offered in the US.
Another flamebait iPad post! Another chance for me to say iPads are a waste of money!
"Su-su-suck it, bitch!" -Jimmy
Living With a Nerd
Just how much do you love Steve Jobs, The Messiah?
Someone can't do math. The numbers are actually really close. Let's look at the base 16GB model. It's £429 in the UK, which equals about $630 according to xe.com. Take off the 17.5% VAT, and we get £353.93. That equals $520 US. What's the problem again???
I like Apple's products but this price is too high for what the iPad is. I recently bought a second hand Tablet PC (a Fujitsu Stylistic) for £180 and shoved Ubuntu Linux and an 8GB SSD in it. Sure, it's bulkier than an iPad but I don't regret my choice now I've seen the UK price. Screw them and their price mark up
Just to put the cheapest one into context:
* iPod Touch - £189
* Dell Laptop (Outlet) - £300
* Acer / Dell Laptops (Retail) - £400-450
* ePC "Netbook" - £200
* Dell "Netbook" - £139
* Sony "Netbook" - £399
So you could get two iPod Touches, or a Dell Laptop AND Dell Netbook, Sony Netbook, or two ePC Netbooks for this money?
Why the flamebait? What they are calling the "apple tax" is really the value add tax, which must be built into the price of all products sold. Why should products be priced identically across all countries anyway? Shouldn't companies maximize their profits by pricing their wares competitively with the local market?
Let me guess - in Europe, you'd pay exactly those prices listed? No sales tax added on?
So you'd pay £429 / £499 / £599 / £529 / £599 / £699 for an iPad and not a penny more in sales/VAT?
That's one thing we have in North America - the prices listed ($499/$599/$699/$629/$729/$829) are sans sales tax. So add anywhere from 0% (a few states), to 5-10% to the actual price that Americans pay. Or in Canada, anywhere from 5-15% in sales taxes.
In the UK, the prices tend to be all inclusive - you pay what you see, so all the hidden consumption taxes get built in. VAT of nearly 20%, plus other import taxes and duties and the like. I'm guessing the price gap is a lot smaller than you think.
It's just that governments have used built-in taxes to hide how much taxes are really on products. Happens on this side of the pond with stuff like gas when you actually break down the price.
For example, the 16GB WiFi iPad - £429 is around $630 US. $500 US for the same iPad, plus taxes will probably mean one pays $530-$550 in the US. If we assume the total tax load is (VAT+importation taxes plus duties) 20% for the UK, that $500 iPad becomes $600 instantly.
BTW, The iPad does have to be tested for EU safety certification. This is a costly process as the standards are high (as is the mains voltage!). Maybe Apple are planning to recoup these costs with the higher price.
Of course, most sensible buyers will wait for the price to drop by a $100 or two, as is normal with Apple's marketing.
politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons
At least we didn't change ours because the person who wrote the dictionary didn't like the spellings.
In America the price was more than a netbook but not game breakingly more, in Britain the worst version of the iPad will be twice as expensive as a netbook.
Puzzle Daze is now my job
so, uh, where do you work?
-- 'The' Lord and Master Bitman On High, Master Of All
Some of the data plans.
No kidding!!! What do you say at this point?
Most of the price differential appears to be from the UK VAT, unless I'm mistaken.
Apple is glad to see such free advertising! This is consumerism crap, not slashdot-worthy "stuff that matters" content...
Seriously. I wish I made £499 a day. Who let the CIO on /.?
Firstly that there is a "right" number that people are willing to pay for techie gadgets. 499 of whatever currency units is about right for a toy like this. People don't think about exchange rates when looking at an item on a retail shelf.
Second, it's hardly just Apple. All companies that export from the US into the UK are making a fortune. That's the upside of having your country's currency devalued. Consider: the Chrysler 300C has a US base price of $28k, but a UK base price of £25k (or $37.5k at an exchange rate of 150%).
Not a typewriter
Are we talking illegal or legal? Because to do it according to the law, your friend should probably pay at least the import / duty taxes, and maybe even VAT to the Her Majesty's.
If we are talking illegal, then one might wonder how much will it cost to find someone who found an iPad that "fell of a truck". Or maybe do a snatch and run by yourself. Where would you like to draw the line?
Nothing, it's a lie– $499 * 1.175 (VAT) in GBP is £399.27. Last I checked, 399.27 * 1.5 was not 429.
There's a £20 bump, and no more.
A buddy of mine has sold 4, 16gig non 3G iPads to UK and German people on ebay for over $650.00 each.
They want these things and are willing to pay a premium plus nearly $100.00 in shipping to get them.
He sells only a few more and he has made enough to get himself a free iPad.
Also from the looks on ebay, they will not have a problem selling them over there even with really skewed currency values.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
In the US an iPad is more than twice as expensive as a netbook. Netbooks start at $230, but the iPad Starts at $500.
My brother has an iPad, and it is nothing like a netbook, so I don't know why people compare them. Right now the iPad is in a class of it's own. Don't point me to some slate computer with a desktop OS. The iPad is built from the ground up to be what it is. That's true of no other tablet computing product on the market today.
£429/1.175=£365.11, which is approximately $537.80. The mark up from the US prices seems to be around 8%.
Unless you factor in that you have to pay sales tax in most places in the U.S - which coincidentally for my area is 8%, so basically the exact same price in the end.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Just for your information, in Spain the prices (according to http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2010/05/07/navegante/1273236060.html) are 479, 579 and 679 euros (wifi) and 579, 679 and 779 euros (3G). All prices include VAT (I think it's 16% for this kind of thing).
In US$, those prices would be $610, $738, $859 and $738, $859, $993.
In pounds, £413, £499, £585, £499, £585, £676.
My guess, it won't sell much in Spain, with the crisis, and with the mean salary being something in the vicinity of 1,100 euros per month (although I'm sure some fanboys will be willing to starve to get it :P).
It's not 150%, it's 126%. And the UK price includes 17.5% VAT which Apple would have to send straight to Gordon Brown's tax collectors if he hadn't just been thrown out (I think he is refusing to leave, but thank heavens he will), whereas the US price doesn't include US sales tax.
Having just been there, indeed, 13.25% in the Second City.
UK VAT (the equivalent of sales tax in the USA) is 17.5%
Removing the tax so we can compare fairly: £429 / 1.175 => £365.11
Converting pounds to dollars: £429 = $539.94 (currency rate is 1 GBP = 1.47884 USD)
So, the difference (before taking into account the import duties of ~10%) is $539.94 - $499.99 or ~$40.
Subtracting $53 (estimated) of import duty means Apple is charging less than they do in the USA.
Simon.
Physicists get Hadrons!
With a round-trip ticket from Heathrow to NYC going for under $500 (Virgin, leaving Heathrow Saturday, returning from NYC on Monday), how many iPads would a Londoner have to buy in the US to cover the airplane ticket with the money saved? Just a handfull or so?
Ken
They also announced the Canadian prices today:
http://www.apple.com/ca/pr/library/2010/05/07ipad.html
Looks like we'll be paying $50 more if we want one. On the plus side, the iBook application was also announced for us and up to this point it wasn't clear if we would be getting it.
Well, it has never been successfully tested.
There's a £20 bump, and no more.
If you're going to include VAT, include US sales tax too:
£429 * 1.075 (approximate sales tax in the US) = £461.18
£461.18 - £399.27 = £61.91
No, this is still not 150%, but it's more than three times the £20 that you said it was. Unless there is some other "sales tax" in the UK other than VAT, in which case you can call me an uninformed American and move on. :-)
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
No, the US price listed doesn't include sales tax, the UK price does include VAT. To compare apples to apples, we must take the US price, convert to pounds, and then add VAT.
Okay, I AM an uninformed American. I didn't realize the 429 included VAT already, due to my lack of reading comprehension. You were adjusting the $499 to include VAT, which makes it a direct comparison. Sorry!
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
They don't? Round up.
The iPad (and iPhone, and iPod) charge on 5 volts DC from the USB connector (which is sort of a defacto international standard for charging portable devices). It doesn't care whether you have 110V/60Hz AC or 220V/50Hz AC mains; your computer (or wall wart) takes care of that.
Support Right To Repair Legislation.
Worse storage, Worse flexibility, Worse software selection, Worse productivity, there isn't anything on the ipad you can't do on a netbook, but there are a lot of things you can do on a netbook that you can't do on an ipad. The ipad isn't a tablet. Tablets have been out for years. Tablets are computers with a touch interface, mostly without keyboards. The ipad is a presentation device. It isn't made for computing. Writing a paper on an ipad would just be painful. It's made to view web pages, watch a movie, listen to music, or play some light-weight games/apps. It's not a good design for a creative platform.
if (it != oneThing) it = another;
What's that smell?
That "worst" version is a lot more usable than any netbook near the same price. Higher resolution and a better quality screen, for example.
Really? 155 ppi, $330 as opposed to the iPad's 132 ppi, $500. With the $170 left over, you could even get some pretty nice upgrades.
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So don't %#!$ing buy it.
If you didn't bend over and keep asking for it, the prices would come down.
Fanboys (Apple or otherwise) get ripped because they let themselves get ripped. Case closed.
Stupid, sexy Flanders.
I know it doesn't replace anything, and if I'm honest it is just because its a shiny new tech toy, but it's still less than a day's wages so I'll be plonking down £499 as soon as I can.
You are an idiot who spends his money foolishly. You will suffer for that when the economy comes crashing down around you!
Athiesm is a religion like not collecting stamps is a hobby.
Everything is more expensive in the UK than the US. Have you priced out a car there recently? 17.5% VAT is one reason, and a market that is willing to pay more is another. A third (probable) reason is that Apple would want a nice round number, not something like £437.13.
Funny that Slashdotters can complain about an "Apple Tax" quicker than a real tax.
They're not exporting from the US to the UK. Well, at least not Apple. None of their stuff is manufactured in the US. The Chryslers sold here probably aren't made in the US either, right-hand drive, etc. iPads are made in China, I'm guessing.
"Impartiality is a pompous name for indifference, which is an elegant name for ignorance." - G.K. Chesterton
No VAT or import taxes perchance?
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
who pays sales tax on easily mailed items in the US? 49 states in the US can order direct from Apple's store without paying sales tax.
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
So let them whine and let it be louder, sweet music to my ears. I say, iTunes DJ, put that music on heavy rotation! I'm feeling Magical!
As you were.
-- How I want a drink, alcoholic of course, after the heavy lectures involving quantum mechanics.
Indeed, wheras in the UK, apple must pay VAT on every single item sold, hence we need to add VAT to the price to get a fair comparison.
No, this is still not 150%, but it's more than three times the £20 that you said it was. Unless there is some other "sales tax" in the UK other than VAT, in which case you can call me an uninformed American and move on. :-)
Not uninformed, but non-thinking.
In the USA, the quoted price (the price you see in an advert or in a shop) is exclusive of sales tax / use tax. The US customer doesn't actually pay $499 for an iPad, they pay $499 plus whatever the sales tax is, say 8% = $39.92. The merchant receives $499 + $39.92 and sends $39.92 straight off to the tax office.
In the UK, the quote price (the price you see in an advert or in a shop) is inclusive of 17.5% VAT (value added tax). The UK customer hands over exactly the £429 on the sticker, not a penny more, and doesn't ow anybody any money afterwards. The merchant receives £429. £429 equals 117.5%, so the merchant pays 17.5% = £63.89 to the tax office and keeps 100% = £365.11.
The difference in tax rates has nothing to do with Apple, so if we are talking about Apple's price strategy and not about living costs, we have to leave the tax out. So what we have to compare is the $499 exclusive tax in the US and the £365.11 exclusive tax in the UK. And that is with the current exchange rate about $40 difference. Your number makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.
You have to charge the state's sales tax if the company has a branch in that state (aka the Apple Store).
If I have been able to see further than others, it is because I bought a pair of binoculars.
Consider: the Chrysler 300C has a US base price of $28k, but a UK base price of £25k
While I don't doubt that's true, I'd really, really like to believe that you Brits are smart enough to know better than to buy a Chrysler 300. I mean, not even many of us Americans buy those sleds.
This ain't rocket surgery.
Your link didn't work, but the HP Mini 210 HD you tried to link to has a few issues - it's twice as thick, weighs a pound more, and going back to the screen does not have an IPS display as the iPad has, and it's also smaller in the 768 pixel direction (since the HP 10.1 inch screen has a wider screen).
It's only got a GB of memory, and the keyboard would be pretty small to type on. As I said, I don't see that as being better than the iPad. I see it being a very tiny and kind of mediocre laptop.
I am also dubious of the HP battery claims.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Please read my reply post where I corrected my error more than an hour before your post. Thank you!
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
Another issue on top of the compulsory VAT; the UK- and now EU- consumer law that applies is generally much stronger than that in the US.
For example, Sony were selling PS2s in the US with a 90 day warranty. I've even seen cheap laptops being sold with a 30 day warranty.
IANAL, but my understanding is that you wouldn't get away with that in the UK (*) as it's nowhere near what anyone would reasonably expect such items to last for without breaking down.
Obviously, having to honour warranty repairs for longer and not being able to get away with cutting corners to the bone (**) in quality means that manufactureres aren't- in general- going to be able to sell goods quite as cheap within the EU.
Whether the above applies to the iPad, and- in general- how much of the US/UK price differentials can be legitimately covered by it is open to question, but IMHO it's undeniably a factor too many people ignore.
(*) Although contrary to what some people think, you *don't* automatically get a 5 year warranty or whatever in the EU, those are just the upper limits in some cases.
(**) Yay mixed metaphors...
"Slashdot - News and Chat Sites Deviant". (Click "homepage" link above for details).
Flamebait
I agree that you are allowed to spell as you wish, but when writing a *Dictionary* you are generally supposed to reflect the language *in use* not as you would like it to be used. Just because Webster didn't see the point in the silent letters is no reason to leave them out. Then Americans might be just able to pronounce Loughborough.
it's also smaller in the 768 pixel direction
But still has 768 pixels! What's your point? I see that you failed to mention that it is LARGER in the other direction! I'm sorry, but in general, a 10.1 inch screen is going to be larger than a 9.7 inch screen. The HP's screen is larger, has more ppi, and as a result, also has a higher resolution. Yes, you got me on the IPS display, but that's just one factor.
It's only got a GB of memory
As opposed to the iPad's 256MB? I'm sorry, 256 is bigger than 1 does not work in this case. 1 GB is more than 256MB and as far as non-volatile memory, 160GB is much more than 16GB (though, you have me on the flash vs HDD argument), and you can upgrade to 250 GB while STILL keeping it under the iPad price point.
and the keyboard would be pretty small to type on.
The largest keyboard you could fit on an iPad is 7.76 inches long. The keyboard on the HP is about 10 inches or at the very least, 9.5 inches. So it seems you think the keyboard on the iPad would be way too small to type on as well. Again, what's your point?
I am also dubious of the HP battery claims.
Be dubious all you want. I can just as easily say that I am dubious about Apple's battery claims. But I have one of these netbooks and they are pretty accurate from my own experience. I get about 8.5-9 hours of normal use with the 6-cell which is pretty close to their 9.5 hour posted value, and not too far off from apple's posted 10 hours. Put your fanboy hat away, and look at the facts. Apple products are overpriced because you are paying for the name and the reputation that comes with it. I'm not saying Apple products are crap, I just don't yet see the iPad as revolutionary. I'll wait til they enhance features or drop the price.
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
There aren't many, but I have seen one or two. They're *huge* for UK streets, quite unwieldy I suspect.
But still has 768 pixels! What's your point? I see that you failed to mention that it is LARGER in the other direction
Only in terms of pixels - diagonally it's almost the same size screen as the iPad, which means it's physically about as wide, but not as tall (holding the screen as you would a laptop).
That's less space to display stuff, DPI is only a measure of how smooth a line would be.
Yes, you got me on the IPS display, but that's just one factor.
But an important one for shared viewing, and also long term reading.
As opposed to the iPad's 256MB?. I'm sorry, 256 is bigger than 1 does not work in this case.
Actually it does. Because all iPad apps are developed against that base target memory size, and the OS and frameworks are all built around the fact the memory is reduced.
That's also why browsing on an iPad is a LOT faster than on the system you brought up, because the software is optimized for the system. With a netbook you are going to be running a lot of software targeting a desktop that will indeed run, but not run that great, on a more constrained system.
The largest keyboard you could fit on an iPad is 7.76 inches long.
Yes, but for some keyboard (like a number pad) the keys will be far larger. And if I really need to I can use an external Bluetooth keyboard.
But basically the customizability of the keyboard for the task makes it more useful than a cramped physical keyboard.
I can just as easily say that I am dubious about Apple's battery claims
Actually
you
can't.
Pogue said he was able to use the device for 12 hours before it needed a charge, while Mossberg said iPad withstood 11 hours and 28 minutes of continuous use.
One thing Apple does, is give a realistic figure for battery life for all its products.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
The problem is not Europe. The problem is that people don't understand that the price of technological products in the U.S is the lowest in the world.
Gadgets, software, LCD's, media etc... Their is not a cheaper place to buy them than in the U.S.
In the UK you can (and many people do) sue for some "suitable time of use" and this is about two or three years for a piece of technology. So regardless of warranty you can (and again, if you try you *can*) get Apple and others to replace a computer that fails within the first two to three years.
In Germany this is three years by law, by the way. You may have to sue, but if you didn't break the thing by yourself you will win.
statistics please with references to prove better or worse care.
So you could get two iPod Touches, or a Dell Laptop AND Dell Netbook, Sony Netbook, or two ePC Netbooks for this money?
I can tell you from personal experience that even keeping *one* EeePC netbook happy in the long run is more than I'm willing to take for a device for browsing the web and checking my mail and reading books and watching a movie.
Mind you, I'm *not* getting an iPad (yet), I have enough devices to use. But I can fully understand everyone who does. If you're not a programmer or a computer enthusiast (whatever this is) an iPad is an obvious choice. Everyone who doesn't understand this is an idiot. It gives you 95% of whatever you may need for 0% of the effort and your valuable time. If this isn't a good deal, I don't know.
It didn't occur to me that the price would include VAT, do list prices in Europe normally include VAT? Guess I should've RTFA.
rooooar
You did worse - you changed some of yours because you wanted to sound more "foreign". What's particularly offensive is that "foreign" in that case meant French! ~
It's not an Apple Tax, it's a UK Tax. It pays for all kinds of things you take for granted in the UK that simply don't exist here in the US.
Here is an example of how it works for the terminally stupid:
* in the US, Joe walks down to his local Apple Store and buys an iPad for US$499, then on his way back home, while stepping over a family of homeless people who are dying on the sidewalk, Joe falls and breaks his leg. A passerby calls 911 and Joe is taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital, who refuses to treat him because he doesn't have insurance, even though he works 40 hours per week at a profitable multinational company for 3 years, he is still considered a temp and he cannot afford the cost of buying his own healthcare, which is 50% of his annual salary. So back in the ambulance and over to the worst hospital in town, still without so much as a pain killer to ease his suffering, where his leg is set by a disinterested doctor and he is billed $15,000. Total cost of iPad: US$15,499.
* In the UK, Simon walks down to his local Apple Store and buys an iPad for £429, then on his way back home, while stepping over a government surveillance camera that has fallen onto the sidewalk, Simon falls and breaks his leg. A passerby calls 999 and Simon is taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital, who treat him and bill him nothing. Total cost of iPad: £429.
So STFU. Apple tax! What a fucking asshole.
When I can get a 3G USB stick for $60 or so. Surely the factory/board costs would be 50% of that like $30.
The 3G price difference should be $50 at most.
And also why are the differences between the 16gig wifi/3G different to a 64gig wifi/3G if the only difference is 3G.
Then the difference in price should be equal.
Talk about 'pricing based on perceived usefullness' , not cost.
Liberty freedom are no1, not dicks in suits.
Only a minority of states are like that, such as NY and a few others. Because of how the dramatically different each state's sales tax laws are. But if you buy your apple products from Amazon or Tiger Direct instead you can save yourself around $40. shipping from many of these retailers is free now for the lower 48 for orders over a certain amount (usually $25-$50). Amazon is very careful about having paid employees working in states with sales tax laws. They have a number of offices in California, but get around the sales tax by not having them operated directly under Amazon, even though they really are tightly integrated into their parent company in every possible way. (I used to work for an Amazon company) But I wasn't allowed to take my company's product to CES because Nevada's sales tax laws are much more difficult to get around than California's.
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
who pays sales tax on easily mailed items in the US? 49 states in the US can order direct from Apple's store without paying sales tax.
Well all of Texas does, and I think they are one of the top three states iPads have been selling in. Are there really that few states that don't require you to pay sales tax online when the company has a physical presence?
If you assume he works 5 days a week and 48 weeks a year it is only 119k, not 1 million.....
Oops. Math sans coffee fail. Or comprehension, for some reason I multiplied by 2,000, so must have assumed he meant /hr, not /day.
California. top iPad state. largest population. and highest state sales tax.
Yes. people pay the sales tax a pretty significant percentage of the time. but in the US it is pretty easy to get around paying sales tax on an iPad if you're willing to not do an impulse buy at an Apple store.
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
We were wandering around the big computer mall in Kuala Lumpur yesterday and found several shops selling 32GB wifi iPads for MYR2900 (USD950). At that price someone would have to be pretty desperate to show off.
"Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all other countries because you were born in it." -- GBS
That's less space to display stuff, DPI is only a measure of how smooth a line would be.
No, it's not. Anything you can fit on your iPad screen, I can fit on my netbook with 352 x 768 pixels to spare. By your logic, a 52" bigscreen TV with 160 x 90 resolution would be better than a small computer monitor with 1080i. I have some oceanfront property in Arizona I'd like to sell you...
As opposed to the iPad's 256MB?. I'm sorry, 256 is bigger than 1 does not work in this case.
Actually it does. Because all iPad apps are developed against that base target memory size, and the OS and frameworks are all built around the fact the memory is reduced.
That's also why browsing on an iPad is a LOT faster than on the system you brought up, because the software is optimized for the system. With a netbook you are going to be running a lot of software targeting a desktop that will indeed run, but not run that great, on a more constrained system.
Ever heard of "Ubuntu Netbook Remix"? Runs amazingly on this netbook, and it WAS build specifically for netbooks. So sure, you have an app that was developed against 256MB, but an equivalent application for the desktop that was built around 1GB of memory or so will be able to run more quickly, because it can cache more data. The ONLY advantage the iPad has memory wise is that it's permanent memory is Flash.
for some keyboard (like a number pad) the keys will be far larger.
So? Why the hell does that matter? If you've learned touch typing on a number pad, having huge keys is a hindrance not a help. Sorry, I'm no grandpa.
And if I really need to I can use an external Bluetooth keyboard.
So can I. And I can also use a USB one without having to by additional, overpriced, apple accessories, so I have more options than you.
I can just as easily say that I am dubious about Apple's battery claims
Actually
you
can't.
Pogue said he was able to use the device for 12 hours before it needed a charge, while Mossberg said iPad withstood 11 hours and 28 minutes of continuous use.
One thing Apple does, is give a realistic figure for battery life for all its products.
And as I said, I have used my laptop and found that HP's estimates are pretty accurate as well. You have only served to prove my point:
You
can't
either!
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
Oh... and I can PRINT right out of the box! Unlike you... (yes, I know there are some printing applications, but that picture is just hilarious) Plus there are a multitude of other devices that I can hook up to my laptop via USB (an industry standard, unlike the proprietary iPo/ad connector) that you can't do with an iPad.
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
No, it's not. Anything you can fit on your iPad screen, I can fit on my netbook with 352 x 768 pixels to spare
In a smaller physical space. You just have a higher DPI. bUt in terms of absolute readability AND space for controls (which is a fixed size independent of resolution because a finger does not change size with the pixels).
Ever heard of "Ubuntu Netbook Remix"? Runs amazingly on this netbook, and it WAS build specifically for netbooks.
Of course, but that;s hardly a practical thing for 99% of the general populace to use. And while the OS WAS built to target a netbook, most of the software you install was not (though Linux software is much lighter weight so it hardly matters).
If you're arguing Linux at this point, I bid you farewell - you are off the charts as far as general use.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
which is a fixed size independent of resolution because a finger does not change size with the pixels.
No, but I don't use my finger. I use a cursor. Which, by the way, DOES change size with the pixels.
Of course, but that;s hardly a practical thing for 99% of the general populace to use. And while the OS WAS built to target a netbook, most of the software you install was not (though Linux software is much lighter weight so it hardly matters).
If you're arguing Linux at this point, I bid you farewell - you are off the charts as far as general use.
No, I'm not arguing Linux. I'm just pointing out a single example that shows that there ARE things made specifically for Netbooks. In addition, I can run virtually any application application I want on my netbook (minus resource intensive ones, which is no different for you), while you are restricted to running things built specifically for the iPad (or iPhone or iPod Touch)
SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
In .au, it is mandatory to advertise prices only with the GST (Our VAT equivalent). I am surprised that is not the case for most countries.
Your view on 'owning' is accurate in my opinion. But it does boil down to the subjects view of their possessions.
It's worth pointing out that the pound is at an almost one year low against the dollar, and is sitting below it's natural level against the dollar and has been for months because of the political uncertainty.
Should we get a coalition government or similar that takes decisive action in cutting the UK's deficit which has been put off in the run up to the electon, you can add a good 10% minimum onto those percentages as the pound returns back up towards it's natural level against the dollar over the next 6 months to a year.
The fact that there's a markup at all when the pound is so weak against the dollar is quite inexcusable particularly as Apple has a history of taking years to rectify pricing issues by which time they've usually gotten away with it even when they accept that it's wrong in the face of an anti-trust case such that it's too late, and a few percent adds up to a notable chunk of money on not exactly cheap devices like this. Make no mistake, ripping off British consumers has long been part of Apple's business model.
It's worth pointing out of course that it's not just Apple that does this, however there are some notable exceptions, from places we perhaps least expect them. Microsoft points for XBox Live / Games for Windows Live are actually cheaper in the UK than the US thanks to current exchange rates when you factor in VAT for example, however they certainly weren't when things were riding at $2 USD to £1 GBP. Microsoft puts a massive markup on other goods too however such as Windows, Office and so forth but it's commendable they haven't used it as an excuse to up prices like some companies.
Companies upping costs in the face of weakened exchange rates is fine normally, but when we already pay much more to start with? They can fuck off, I wont buy anything that's severely marked up. To give some examples of when the pound was strong, I bought a Nintendo DS for my girlfriend and an iPod nano for myself, but I didn't buy them in the UK where they were both around the £120 mark, I bought them when we went to Canada where they were the equivalent of £65- almost half price. It was around $2.10 USD and $2.30 CAD to £1 GBP at the time. That's why I have little sympathy for companies that raise prices when the pound is weak, because they're more than happy to charge us nearly double rather than reduce prices when it's strong.