Britain the most expensive place to buy an iPad

Germany is more expensive...

Okay, only 2 quid, but still... ;-)

By big_D on 1 Jun 2010

VAT ...

The UK price includes VAT where as the US price doesnt include Sales tax.

By JDunkerley on 1 Jun 2010

@JDunkerley
I think the take that into account, hence "the only difference in pricing should be freight charges and local taxes".

By The_Scrote on 1 Jun 2010

More Meaningless Drivel

£429=$620
$499+17.5% VAT = $586

So the iPad is 5.8% more expensive -NOT a quarter!

Having recently discovered that PC Pro journalists don't understand GGSE physics, we now know they can't do maths either!

By milliganp on 1 Jun 2010

@milliganp - it is not PC Pro who are saying this, it is "Craig James, chief economist at the CommSec share trading division of Australia's Commonwealth Bank." which is perhaps even more worrying if they can be so far wrong. But perhaps he doesn't know that we include sales tax in end user pricing?

PC Pro should be debunking this story though, not just repeating it.

By MJ2010 on 1 Jun 2010

More Apple Bashing

Here we go again, fed up of bashing Microsoft, it is now Apples turn and why all because they make things that work. A few years ago I was opposed to Apple until I got an iPod Touch, a year ago I bought a Macbook and I spent all the time using rather than fixing it. I now leave fixing Windows to my work time.
The price difference when you take out tax is next to nothing. If the EU want to bash someone over prices and take action, rather than the usual hot air they should look at Adobe and their prices for products in Europe.

By r50mini on 1 Jun 2010

Taxes

The prices quoted in the story above do include VAT/sales taxes, except for the US.

So the UK is still more expensive than everyone else, even when you do take into account the US sales tax (on average around 8%).

Barry Collins

By Barry_Collins on 1 Jun 2010

As a happy iPhone and netbook owner, I really struggle to see at the moment a use for an iPad. I like the idea but don't want to get drawn any further into Apple's rather totalitarian business practises.

Bring the basic unit down to £250 though and I may be more interested.

By Kratos on 1 Jun 2010

Don't worry. VAT will go up soon then we can complain about that instead of Apple's pricing.

By stoin86 on 1 Jun 2010

Wrong again

This is the second time you have run such an article. Last time people complained at the misleading tax and now you've done it again.

By peterm2k on 1 Jun 2010

@Barry_Collins

You miss the point which is that when comparing figures thay should be calculated on a comparable basis! Tax should either be included or excluded in all cases!

If you are criticising Apple, you should exclude tax as Apple have no control over this. If you are criticising governments, then comparing average price differences across a range of products would be more useful to take out the effects of opportunistic over-pricing by individual companies.

By JohnAHind on 1 Jun 2010

@Barry_Collins

Barry, this is the sort of sensationalist claptrap journalism that PC Pro should be distancing itself from, and is making me wonder whether it is still the magazine I first subscribed to.

You have chosen not to give figures including US sales tax and put them next to UK figures including VAT simply to make the difference seem all the larger!

In the leading paragraph, your own editorial (NOT a quote from someone else) states that the difference is "around a quarter". Allowing for 8% US sales tax (ie $539), the difference is actually around 15%, which is NOT "around a quarter". Removing the VAT from the UK price puts that down to the equivalent of $527, which is hardly worth a news story when compared to $499! Quoting questionable maths from a chief economist is one thing, but it is entirely your responsibility how you interpret it for your editorial.

By halsteadk on 1 Jun 2010

@halsteadk

US sales tax is a state tax and ranges from 0% to over 20%, so you need to compare it to specific states... That said, they could have taken the ex. VAT prices in each country.

By big_D on 2 Jun 2010

Pound Depreciate Further?

The article makes little sense. If the pound and euro depreciated further it would take more to purchase an Ipad?
Anyway Apple along with Adobe and many others regularly shaft the european consumer for prices. Just don't buy one, its simple?

By DumbMarine on 2 Jun 2010

For goodness sake!!

How many times do journalists have to do over this piece of rubbish about price disparity of the iPad between the US and UK? The article itself even implicitly states why there is a price difference in advertised prices - VAT (or sales ta in the US) is / isn't included. Compare ex. VAT prices with the US and they are surprisingly similar - in fact, a lot more so than many other Apple products. PC *PRO* - I expected better from you than a blog from a teenager who can't do maths!

By mmaddock on 3 Jun 2010

worth the money?

it is not worth anything if you do not have a use for it!!!.
I have an iphone that is basically a smaller version.

Now, if I could plug my DLSR into it- a different proposition.

By delturner1 on 3 Jun 2010

Price differential

Oh calm down ye defenders of Apple! The fact is that there IS a price differential even accounting for all taxes of 10-15% according to my maths. Given that this equates to over £100 on the top model that is significant.

Or maybe it's OK for British buyers of the iPad to pay more than their US counterparts? Is that really what Apple supporters are saying?

Personally, I get much more exercised about the differentials in Adobe product prices which are usually much more marked. For example, CS5 Design Premium costs 17% more (net of all taxes) to buy in the UK compared with the US, that's over £200.

By KevPartner on 3 Jun 2010

VAT pays for our welfare state

It is spurious to compare prices in the US & Europe without accounting for the differences in sales tax.

In Europe sales tax is 15-25% & funds the welfare state. In the US sales tax is 0-8% & most definitely does not fund free healthcare that is among other welfare benefits that we all enjoy.

By nigelbbb on 3 Jun 2010

UK prices are comparable to the rest of Europe

The price in the UK is comparable to Eurozone countries but the exchange rate varies. Today the price of an iPad in the UK is slightly higher but this merely reflects the recent fall in the value of the Euro.

The entry level iPad is 429 pounds in the UK & 499 Euros in France. Today 499 Euros is worth about 416 pounds but three months ago was worth 452 pounds.

By nigelbbb on 3 Jun 2010

adobe

the thing to remember is that the download site is in EIRE so you pay their VAT at 21%. The UK Governmnet gets none!!!

This applies even if you are in the UK store.

By delturner1 on 3 Jun 2010

Peter Smith

UK is not the most expensive, in Cyprus the 16gb wireless sells for 674 euro's

By petsmith2 on 3 Jun 2010

Who cares?

It is an Apple product, either buy in to the Apple "experience" or you don't.
If you do you won't care.
If you don't you will just laugh at the the Apple aficionados gullibility.

The world prices everything in US dollars, so we get ripped off every time why are we still surprised?

By Lorribot on 4 Jun 2010

What a load of rubbish

Seems to be 'Bash Apple' time at the moment

A typical piece of garbage journalism, with no investigation of the facts.

Here are the actual facts:

US price EX sales tax $499
Convert to UK = £347.74

UK price EX vat = £365.11

That makes a difference of £17.37 or 5%

This price also doesn't take into consideration the UK Government also charges Customs Duty on top of the import price as well. All this needs to be taken into account when setting the UK price.

I must also add, these prices were worked out when exchange rates were 1.442 USD to the GBP

By dalep on 6 Jun 2010

uk_sux

That's one of many reason why uk sux. They earn less than americans and spend higher than americans. What a royal country LOL!

By uk_sux on 19 Jun 2010

Prices in Malaysia

Why on earth is my friends in Malaysia getting this kind of price ?

http://store.apple.com/my/browse/home/shop_ipad/fa
mily/ipad/select?mco=MjE2MjYyNzA

Cheapest
RM 1,499.00 @ £ 306

Highest End @ £ 510
RM 2,499.00

it's like a world of difference when price is concern.

And those are the prices that they are actually paying right now to get a ipad 2.

By unrealweapon on 1 May 2011