on 6/2/01 "A. Percy" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Corina <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >> Someone mentioned the 2400 holding its price, which reminded me of a >> question i have wanted to ask you. I paid $1800 for my 2400. Why is the >> basic iBook so much cheaper than the 2400 was? Have computer prices gone >> down? Or was the 2400 more upscale when it came out than the iBook is now? >> Or...? >> > Oh, the pain... > > I paid something like $3300 for a PB 2400 with an educational > discount when it was first released. I watched the price plummet to > about $1800 within four months after my purchase! And it continued > to drop from there! Argh!! Still, it was a great improvement for me > over the heavy 1400 I owned briefly beforehand. When you have to lug > a computer and a bunch of books around campus all day, a few pounds > can make a lot of difference. Don't feel too bad. I paid $6500 for a maxxed out 540c--which I had almost 3 years. It outlived an outrageous maxxed out 5300c for which I paid $6650 and dumped after 3 weeks. It was Apple's double disaster, a 5300 and system 7.5.2. Nothing was stable and nothing worked! That was really ARGH!!! My first 2400 was acquired in the $1600 range some time after my armbreaking 3400 (which I soon upgraded with a G3-Kanga board swap). The 2400 is still going strong into Year 5 and gets carried everywhere. I guess I really got back my money's worth. > > Apple's pricing strategy seems to have changed in the past few years. > They used to release PowerBooks at very high prices which would drop > substantially (like by a half) by the time the next model came out. Good observation but the price "strategy" had A LOT to do with Apple's disastrous product development, marketing, forecasting and inefficient, scattered manufacturing. They had far too many models at the time and always had to dump inventory. > Now they release them at lower prices, but the price drops are pretty > minor over time. So a used PB holds its value better now. This may > be true of PC laptops too, I really don't know. But I worry much > less about the exact timing of my purchases now, because I don't ever > again expect to see a 50%+ drop in price for *unused* PowerBooks in > less than a year, like I saw with the PB 2400. Again, that price drop was nothing compared to the 5300 :-(. With far more efficient subcontracted manufacturing and a drop in Apple's 10% market share to half (or less), leaner/meaner does it much better today--and we are the beneficiaries. Sidney Ho ---------- Duo/2400 List, The friendliest place on the Net! A listserv for users and fans of Mac subportables. FAQ at <http://www.themacintoshguy.com/lists/DuoListFAQ.shtml> Be sure to visit Mac2400! <http://www.sineware.com/mac2400> To unsubscribe, E-mail to: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To switch to the DIGEST mode, E-mail to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Need help from a real person? Try. <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ---------- Dr. Bott | 10/100 Ethernet for your 2400 is finally here! MPC-100 | <http://www.drbott.com/prod/mpc100.html> NineWire | If they are cool enough to host this list... Digital Solutions | ...you should check them out! http://www.NineWire.com/ Midwest Mac Parts ][ <http://www.midwestmac.com> After-market parts for Macs. ][ 888-356-1104 ][ MacResQ Specials: LaCie SCSI CDR From $99! PowerBook 3400/200 Only $879! Norton AntiVirus 6 Only $19! We Stock PARTS! <http://www.macresq.com>
