rbd@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu (roger davis) (11/22/90)
chase@ee.princeton.edu (Chris Chase @ Princeton University) writes: > For the information of the net I thought I would post the prices of Macs > at Computer Era of NYC on Park Ave. South. These prices are as low or lower > than most academic prices I have seen (and some universities like Princeton > add a %10 handling fee in addition to sales tax). Source: Tuesday New York Times, > Science Section. > Mac Classic $699 > Mac Lc (2meg) $1499 > Mac SE/30 $2299 > Mac IIsi $2299 > Mac IIci $3399 > Mac IIfx $5699 > Mac Portable $3199 > These units are just the basic units. No stipulations to buy any other > peripherals, but the prices are for payment by cash or certified check. I went there the other day to check this out (on the basis of the ad, not Chris' posting, so I'm not blaming him :-> ) and was extremely disappointed. Their strategy seems to be to attract attention by making great offers for configurations that most people won't want, and charging outrageous prices for useful ones, i.e, boxes with disk and memory. Example #1 Mac Classic $699 Mac Classic 2/40 $1500 They want $800 for disk and memory? Give me a break! Consortium price on the latter is $1064 plus tax/handling. Example #2 SE/30 $2290 SE/30 2/40 $3100 After checking this place out, I finally bought an SE/30 1/40 w/Extended Kbd through the Consortium for $2286 ** total ** (including tax and handling). I will be spending another $70 or so to get my second Meg of memory once I get delivery, for a grand total of $2350. To add insult to injury, Computer Era told me I had to wait probably three weeks for a Classic, and ** six ** weeks for an SE/30, so it's not like you can walk out of the store with one, either. My advice to anybody with access to an educational discount is to use it and not waste days of your time like I did looking for a better deal. I couldn't even find a *used* SE/30 in NY for less than $2500 from anybody that I'd trust. -- Roger Davis Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory rbd@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu