11-23-2009, 10:17 AM

Is there any benefit in buying from the Apple Store? Best Buy is having a sale on Macs...up to $200 off...and I can get their store warranty and save on tax by buying in Delaware. Will I be mussing out on something by not buying at an Apple Store aside from a longer wait at the counter?

11-23-2009, 11:08 AM

If I could buy the same for less at Best Buy I'd go for it. Watch out for open package and old model items, however. And, don't expect the Best Buy people to know anything. You have to be confident in your own expertise when you shop there. Good luck!

11-23-2009, 11:30 AM

There's no reason to buy at the Apple Store. You can always go to the Apple Store (before or after you buy elsewhere) to ask questions or try out the products.

The Online Store is a different matter, since it's the only place you can order a custom config.

But be careful with the Best Buy warranty. On the one hand, you can get accidental damage protection from Best Buy, which Apple doesn't offer. (Not all Best Buy plans have accidental damage coverage, though.) On the other hand, you have to use Best Buy for repairs, and you don't get the support or diagnostic tools that you get with AppleCare. You can get AppleCare at any time within the first year.

11-23-2009, 12:24 PM

I just bought my 2nd iMac last night and can't wait to set it up. I went to the Apple Store at the Glendale Galleria and they ran out of the 27in 3ghz dual core iMac. Went to the Best Buy website and ordered it online for a store pick up and now it's just sitting in my room still boxed up. Got it for $100.00 off too! Going to purchase Applecare on Amazon later on.

11-23-2009, 12:54 PM

the only two reasons to buy direct from apple are online, that is either if you want to save hundreds on a refurb, or customize a new machine. Otherwise your still getting the same machines, the same operating system, and generally the same happiness from any store. So if you see a sale at one place, go for it.

11-23-2009, 01:50 PM

Purchasing from Best Buy is fine. They do offer a good warranty which covers accidental damage. Also, in contrast to one of the previous posts... if you do have to use the Best Buy warranty: Unless the repair is simple and can be done in house (change hard drive, superdrive, etc) Best Buy will send the machine to Apple for repair. If you don't mind dealing with the "Geek Squad" purchasing from Best Buy does have its advantages.

I didn't purchase my machine from Best Buy since our local Apple store is only 10 minutes from my home and I prefer dealing with the knowledgeable geniuses.

Regards.

11-23-2009, 04:17 PM

I bought the 24"iMac 2.66 a couple months ago from Best Buy. Priced it at 1449 at Fry's and took that price to BB and they went down to 1439.

11-23-2009, 05:56 PM

ok i work for best buy and i purchased mine from apple over the phone. i like best buy and all but unless you are wanting the accidental coverage plans, buy from apple if you can. just my $0.02. only thing i wish i got from best buy is my iphone b/c if you break the screen or anything they just replace it. it is a added like $15.00 buck to your bill, no stores in my district had the 32GB one. so i had to buy from apple.

let me know if you have any questions i will try to answer them

11-23-2009, 06:03 PM

Best Buy is about 4mins from my house.
Apple Store is about 45mins from my house.

I bought my 27in iMac at best buy, and ordered AppleCare offline.
I didn't buy Best Buy's Warranty, and they don't sell AppleCare there. (I ordered it online)

If its more convenient for you to buy at Best Buy, like it was for me then why not.
Just don't expect the representative to know much/alot about Apple products.

If you have questions then go to the apple store.

11-23-2009, 07:56 PM

Originally Posted by VegasGeorge

If I could buy the same for less at Best Buy I'd go for it. Watch out for open package and old model items, however. And, don't expect the Best Buy people to know anything. You have to be confident in your own expertise when you shop there. Good luck!

Hey, what the heck, I work at Best Buy... we don't even sell macs at our store, but I am answering questions about them all the time.

Although... he's right. Best Buy will try to sell you anti-virus, which you don't need. I also think Apple Care is probably a better warranty than Geek Squad, and if you're buying in Delaware, why can't you go to an Apple Store and buy apple care in delaware? Or buy Apple Care through best buy. I'm pretty sure they have to offer it, since it's an Apple machine.

11-23-2009, 08:31 PM

My dad says that if having some degree of exclusivity (i.e. Apple Retail Stores) is worth buying for, then by all means use it. In other words, I'd rather buy from the Retail Stores of Apple Inc. than put up with the BS that I sometimes get with buying ANY computer at Best Buy. And mine does sell Apple computers.

11-23-2009, 09:21 PM

Originally Posted by Chris H.

My dad says that if having some degree of exclusivity (i.e. Apple Retail Stores) is worth buying for, then by all means use it. In other words, I'd rather buy from the Retail Stores of Apple Inc. than put up with the BS that I sometimes get with buying ANY computer at Best Buy. And mine does sell Apple computers.

Well I tend to agree with your Dad

I purchased two iPods from Apple and two from BB.

Although I did look countless times at the Mac's at BB, I ordered mine online from Apple. The Apple store close to me is always full of people. Going there is not very pleasant and witnessing the clueless customers is even less interesting.

11-23-2009, 09:55 PM

Originally Posted by DarkestRitual

Hey, what the heck, I work at Best Buy... we don't even sell macs at our store, but I am answering questions about them all the time.

Although... he's right. Best Buy will try to sell you anti-virus, which you don't need. I also think Apple Care is probably a better warranty than Geek Squad, and if you're buying in Delaware, why can't you go to an Apple Store and buy apple care in delaware? Or buy Apple Care through best buy. I'm pretty sure they have to offer it, since it's an Apple machine.

I just bought it from Best Buy online (13" MBP for $1099...there wasn't a deal on the regular MBs or else I would have got that...the memory slot and backlit keyboard weren't worth $200, but I don't feel bad for $100) and picked it up in Wilmington, which is 20 minutes from my house in Philly...the closest Apple Store in DE is another 20 minutes on the highway...pretty much canceling out the tax break in cost of gas and convenience.

No sales pitch, no dealing with the Geek Squad, and I have a couple weeks to decide which warranty route I'll go. I saw no option for Apple Care online though. Thanks all.

11-24-2009, 01:11 AM

You can still get Apple Care through Apple if you register your machine online with them or call. The Geek Squad offers great programs, again, I sold two 3 year black tie protection plans with accidental coverage today, and yes, you have 14 days to decide. They'll run a diagnostic on your machine to make sure it's still tip top and what not, but honestly... I'd just stick with Apple Care. You don't really need what the Geek Squad is offering. Really their services are more geared towards windows PCs. The optimization and restore discs option is great for windows PCs (most of which don't even come with a restore disc anymore... how f'd is that), but they also offer a "Mac Optimization" also for 40 bucks. Being a life long Mac user and using OS X since Jaguar (10.2), I can tell you how I "optimized" my mac when I got it. I set up my user account... I changed my prefs to the way I like them in system prefs... voila... optimized. Maybe run a repair disk permissions just in case when I first got it. Either way, it takes a whopping 20 minutes to set up, and you're done...

In the case of black tie protection, if you're going for a plan without accidental coverage, there is absolutely zero reason to purchase it from Best Buy. If your machine does encounter some issues, you can either drive the extra 20 minutes to the Apple store (worth it to deal with people who actually know what they're doing since BB will ship your computer to Apple anyway), or send it to Apple yourself (shipping paid for). Apple's warranty is excellent. I've used mine several times (not even just the Apple care plan on my old G5, but just the initial warranty on iPods and this machine). They rarely ask questions, and will set you right right away. It's a great warranty through Apple. I'd buy through them.

11-24-2009, 07:46 AM

One advantage from buying from the Apple Online store is that they charge your local sales tax. If it is lower in Delaware, as it is in the unincorporated part of my county, you'll get that lower rate. I saved about $40 on my MBP. And shipping is free. I guess that's two advantages.

Unless you are hot to get your equipment right now, check out the onliine store.