[comp.sys.mac.hardware] Educational price on SE->SE/30 upgrade?

philip@Kermit.Stanford.EDU (Philip Machanick) (05/29/90)

In article <16724@phoenix.Princeton.EDU>, smmontgo@phoenix.Princeton.EDU
(Susan Montgomery) writes:
> >The following are typical educational prices for an M0713 logic board swap:
> >Harvard Technology Product Center quotes $1302. as of 26 March 90.
> >MIT Microcomputer Center quotes $1261. as of April 90.
> >
> >Prices are apparently still dropping, so these may be too high now.
> >List price from Apple is $1699. according to the same MIT price list.
> 
> Well, I did find out what the story was here at PU:  An SE->SE/30
> upgrade (logic board) is $1121 (after the rebate for return of the old
> logic board), and the FDHD is $395 (after the rebate for return of ROMS
> or the old drive or whatever) for a total upgrade of $1616.
> 
> Note that by spending only $21 more ($1637) you can get a whole new
> SE/30, thanks to the new educational price!  Since the upgrade cost
> doesn't include installation, it really is cheaper to get a new SE/30!
> (with the added plus that you still have the original SE to play
> with...)  So much for sensible upgrade paths.
For comparison, here are Stanford Bookstore prices:
SE->SE/30 logic board $1199 INCLUDING installation
Mac SE FDHD upgrade   $ 441 (I haven't checked, but assume this includes
the controller chip, so maybe the FDHD for IIx/IIfx price, $346, is
more accurate)
new SE/30 (1M, no HD) $1724
This is slightly better, but not much, considering the SE/30 would be
a totally new box. BUT there is a much better deal being offered here for
a limited time. You can trade in your older Mac for a new one, as long as
it's a more expensive model. Assuming you are starting with an "old" SE
with 2 800K drives, you can trade it in for a an SE/30.

New SE/30             $1724
"trade-up" value of SE $950 (in "good" condition - don't ask me what
that means)
net cost of "trade up" $774

Compare this with the logic board / FDHD upgrade - even if you get some
trade in value for the old 800K drive (e.g., $100), the upgrade is going
to cost you nearly double.

I think this is a "summer special" rather than a change in strategy, but the
advertizing makes it sound like an Apple deal, not something the local
bookstore thought up. Is this being done anywhere else?

Philip Machanick
philip@pescadero.stanford.edu