Apple Inc (AAPL)

[langostino]

Interesting MacMall bundles

Very interesting to keep an eye on how the catalog resellers package up Macs ...

First, the existence of Boot Camp has been a great benefit for them, b/c Apple won't sell machines with Windows pre-installed, but the catalog resellers can happily do that -- and b/c of their size, they can get great discounts on the OEM Windows, which they can use to effectively get around Apple's restrictions on undercutting Apple's MSRP.

Second, interesting to see $150 rebates in play that bring the "old" (read: 1.83 Ghz) entry-level MBP down to $1,750. Nice. Given how constantly and frequently Intel bumps up its chip speeds, this should create an opportunity for Mac customers with high levels of cost/price sensitivity, to effectively buy machines that are lower-priced than than current Apple pricing, at any given point in time.

Third, the initial MacMall offers are conspicuously missing the common offer of "RAM upgrade" -- the normal value-add way of getting around Apple's MSRP restrictions. Will this change in the near future?