Roger Fingas
Apple on Tuesday began sales of refurbished 12.9-inch iPad Pro models, offering substantial discounts ahead of an anticipated fall refresh.
Base 32-gigabyte Wi-Fi units are priced at $679 in the U.S., $120 off their usual cost. Mid-tier 128-gigabyte options are $809 — $140 off — while top-of-the-line 4G cellular versions are $919, $160 below normal.
Refurbished iPads come with a new battery and shell, as well as a one-year warranty. Third-party retailers have occasionally sold the 12.9-inch Pro for less, however, making it worth checking pricing guides first.
People worried about obsolescence may also want to wait until later this fall, as Apple will likely upgrade the 12.9-inch Pro with a faster processor, and improvements seen on 9.7-inch models, such as a True Tone display and a rear camera flash. Other changes are possible as well, but to date very few rumors have surfaced.
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20 Comments
Evenat refurb prices it is just too expensive. The launch of this iPad Pro should have been the opportunity to reset the prices of the entire iPad line downward to goose sales. Instead the dicks moved price points of new products upward, and kept selling ipads with old CPUs, with continued falling sales as a result. I bet the higher margins do not offset the decline in ipad sales.
The best always costs more, not matter what it is. Technology follows a well known curve. First to market, costs more to develop, to manufacture, to market, to buy, etc. It always does, always has and always will. There are middle of the road products (lower tier iOS not excepted) that cost some less. Products always command the maximum price possible and always bring the maximum price the can. Well known laws of marketing, development, etc. The person or companies that take the most risk stand to have the most to gain, and the most to lose.
The Transistor Radio is almost obsolete. I mean the real transistor radio - the first ones to market. People today can hardly envision anything less than FM or Satellite Radio. They can hardly remember the dial telephone or the "party line" telephone. It was on The Andy Griffin Show - who was Andy Griffin they will say. Who was Walter Cronkite ?
Talk radio is not an improvement - it is a disappointment of the system(s) - Remember when they reported the news ? Remember when CNN televised the beginning of a war instead of having to go to a Movie Theater to watch a newsreel.
All the things you thing Apple should have on the "next" great thing have probably been considered and prototyped in their labs or some other lab somewhere. Cost to Market and the Price the Masses are willing to pay dictates what you have available. Believe me, it can be made - if you complain about the price ($) you probably would not have bought it anyway. You just want to complain.
If you pay enough, you can generally get it or get one - Whatever it is. There are some exceptions. A good hamburger at a fast food restaurant is one exception. Consistently good service in a restaurant is not always possible. The chains cannot control all the factors. I cannot get quality food more than 3 times in a row at the same restaurant. They cannot get the same quality of employees no matter how stringent the interview process. They are just not there. A certain amount of pride and willingness to work is necessary and the $/hour does not buy that.
Quit complaining about the Apple Products, they will produce what will sell. That is it. They make the Money $'s which is what we the stockholders demand - a really good profit. If they did not make the profit, I would go to another company. If you don't invest, then you might not understand this. By the Way, the Stockmarket in general is legalized gambling. If you had the information, everyone would have it. It is a crap shoot based upon knowledge you have. By the time, you know, it is too late, everyone else knows. However, you can make informed investments and wait until they pan out.
If the products cost too much, go buy Android products or Windows products. I buy the best and it is not those - they are good enough, but not good enough for me. I am not rich, but I want the best I can afford. Be it a Computer, a house, a car, a weapon, a hamburger or a light bulb. There is little profit in a business if you make a low end consumer items. You have to sell a heck of a lot of low profit items to make a reasonable amount. The Risk is lower and you make less. That is it.
Take the risk and the reward is maybe there. Don't take it, it is not usually there. Others who did not take the risk are your competition. Microsoft has given up in many areas - they could not compete. They had it made when they were the only ones, only to have their lunch eaten by others. Microsoft still makes a lot of money, but they don't have it made in all areas. Neither does Apple. Neither do you. There is always someone willing to do your job better and perhaps for less - we are a global economy with local pockets.
I sure would like to have an iPad Pro, but I did not want to pay the price or need to pay it for the 1st Generation product. I could have, but did not want to do it. I do want to do it for the 2nd Generation iPad Pro and also the 2nd Generation Watch. They will be worth it to me. I hope they will be worth it to you. May I remind you that 3 years ago you could not afford to buy either. Apple made them affordable and the other tech companies who did not take the risk are now trying to copy them. If you could have gotten a Mac with Software in 1984 like you can today, what would you have been willing to pay ? A Lot - but you could not get them then.
Don't trust politicians - most are part of the government and are not there (or here) to help you. They worked for the jobs - now that they have them, don't expect them to work for you. They will tell you want you want to hear, not what they have done for you in the last few years, but what they will do in a few more years if you re-elect them. Follow the money ($'s) to find out some very interesting information. Evaluate the Risk. See who really owns or runs a foundation or a church or a business. If they have illegal ownership, it is something to be avoided.
Buy Apple, not the Clinton Foundation Hype.