Was not going to comment on this observation, but I figured this Chosun Ilbo article made if fair game for ‘da hole. Apple Computer has released new iPods in time for the holidays. When I saw it on the homepage I literally drooled reading about the iPod Touch. The iPod Touch is basically an iPhone without the phone.
So I went to Apple Computer’s Korean webstore and found something odd in comparison to other webstores. This is for a 8GB iPod Touch.
US Apple Store:
Price: US$299
Ship Date: September 28, 2007
Price: US$345
Ship Date: Sometime October
Japan Apple Store:
Price: US$324
Ship Date: September 28, 2007
Now I can see why it could be a little more than the US (ie Japan’s $25), but almost US$50 is pushing it. But that “sometime October” is inexplicable.
Looks like I may be booking a ticket next month to the Apple store in Fukuoka.
19 Comments
I know you’re being sarcastic (at least I hope you are…) but wouldn’t it be easier just to paypal someone you know in Japan the money to get you one? Or even someone in states?
i have an ipod. It is easy to use. It does what it does. But, paying about 1/4 to 1/3 of the purchase price of the lower ends for battery replacement is overkill and chaining itunes purchases to ipod usage is also highly suggestive of a monopoly.
I believe lawsuits have been already filed with respect to itunes and the battery issue. A consumer would probably not reap a benefit from the lawsuits.
Ipod, imac, iphone remind me of microsoft.
They’re not the best out there. But, people buy’em and somehow grow a brand loyalty to them.
those 2 geeks from the 80’s made a gazillion off of that.
if there is a rule of purchase on i-stuff, it is the following: Never buy a first generation.
Add 8% import duty and 10% VAT to those US prices and you’ll understand the Korea prices a lot easier.
Think of the Ministry of Information and Communications’ radio-frequency testing and approval, its potential for use as a non-tariff trade barrier, and Korea’s refusal to accept any foreign testing regimes and you’ll understand Apple’s product availability dates a lot easier. For example, Apple’s Airport Extreme 802.11 pre-n wireless router is still not available in Korea, although it was introduced in the first week of January. This is the Internet hub of the world, right?
Apple wants to bring you products at the best available price, as quickly as possible. It’s Korea that has a different idea.
There are few Apple products I can imagine that would be cheaper purchased in Fukuoka once you factor in the airline or ferry ticket and costs of in-city transport and accommodations.
If you care about looks and don’t mind the high price, get the airport. I mean who the hell ships wireless router w/o a web interface these days???
If you want to see what your router CAN REALLY do get any one of the Broadcom-based routers and flash it with DD-WRT. Our company’s been passing heavy traffic over the wireless bridge for almost a year without any problems. And bridging is only one its many features.
It’s a cheap and easy way to get the most millage out of your routers. Even my iMac likes it
http://dd-wrt.com
I notice that if one wants to order from Apple USA, online, they must have a U.S. credit card as well. The next best thing is maybe Amazon.com but they refuse to ship even software overseas, believe it or not.
Apple is the new Microsoft.
#5 -
Whether or not you have a US-issued credit card, the online US Apple Store will only ship to US addresses. Even APO and FPO addresses are excluded (sorry, USFK members!).
The iPod touch is great, but I question the usefulness of having it in Korea. The newest innovation with the Touch is the iTunes wi-fi store, which is unavailable in Korea.
The prices are comparable to the US prices but extra taxes are added here. But the good news is that if you plan on goin overseas in the next 3 months of purchase, you can get the tax money back.
I remember getting my first mini ipod for 220,000 won in yongasan (with cash and no tax) and got the same in the “late” apple store for 250,000. But i did get back 30,000 won when in the customs.
Here’s one answer to the Stateside delivery only policy. It adds a few extra dollars to the cost but they are very prompt and you get what you want without all the goat roping that Apple, Amazon and others like them want to put you through.
http://www.shipitapo.com/home.php
If I send to my mommy and she sends it to my Korean address will I go to jail?
@11
I never had a problem with that. I’ve found that buying online in the US, and then having the stuff USPS Priority mailed to me is cheaper for many that could be bought in Korea. Like clothes. Oh, and I don’t end up wearing shiny silver pinstripe suits with pink shirts when I choose from the USA’s stores too.
Have never had any problem with customs.
apple is the old microsoft—when they made stuff everybody and their dog wanted. new apple is not the old apple; they’ve given themselves more flash and cheaper components to make more money. (i have friends who are still on their first macs, clamshell ibooks and even my ti powerbook is still craving out independent film with final cut in my mother’s flat; don’t know of any Al powerbooks that have lasted that long without at least a harddrive failure.)
apple is turning into a much smarter dell. it’s all sad, but i still love their gear.
#11, 12 …
every time i have tech shipped to me from the states, customs opens the box, prices the component and then fedex wants an extra 33% off my ass on delivery.
if you get a touch, have your mommy unwrap it and hide it a pair of smelly socks and it might get through.
@14
Yeah, I should have mentioned that… no original boxes on the tech, all price tags should be removed from the clothes, have mom put in some cookies and magazines and anything else that might make it look like a care package and not a new ipod. If it’s a smaller item, I heard writing GIFT on the box might help too, but dunno. I’ve gotten new tech, old tech, Wii game, and lots of clothes through. Only once did it look like Customs opened the box.
I bought one from the Korean Apple store within hours of the announcement. (I really need to avoid those impulse buys). I can be patient, and indeed my order confirmation states I will have my new 16GB iPod touch in my sticky little hands between October 5-11. In all reality I bet that’s when people in Japan will be getting theirs, likewise if you order from the US apple store today too.
@11
Hahaha shiney silver suits and pink shirts.
I hear ya brother!
Since everyone’s favorite Apple-hating turd-tossing troll is back, I can’t resist. This just in:
Apple Sells One Millionth iPhone
Tsh! iPhone shmyPhone. Next time I go visit my beloved Philippines, I’ll take a detour in Hong Kong and get myself a couple of cheap alternatives in the plethora of knockoffs that are almost as good (if not better, sometimes) than Apple’s, at a fraction of the price. After all, Apple or not, they’re all made in China.
#18 -
What the knockoffs can’t achieve at any price is the user interface, the full-featured web browser, and the solid full-scale operating system that Apple has incorporated into the iPhone. And I suspect that the price drop has put it into competitive range of the knockoffs.