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160GB APPLE TV for £216 in UK

B

Barney6871

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 21, 2007
19
0
This seems a bit of a bargain on Play.Com

Check out

http://www.play.com/Search.aspx?sea...=apple+tv&page=search&pa=search&go.x=0&go.y=0

They list the 160gb TV for £216, but also list it at a whopping £289

Is there a difference in the models? The model number on the £216 one is listed as MB189B/A. In the UK Apple Store the 160gb model is listed as MB189.

Am i right in thinking the £216 one on Play.Com is the current Apple TV and represents (for those of us in the UK) a right bloody bargain, given its £53 ($100) cheaper than the list price.

Any observations would be welcome.
 
Yup, that's a bargain alright... if only I had an HDTV :rolleyes: I don't think there has been a revision of the 160GB model, so this will be the same as anyone else's stock, and will run the forthcoming 'Take 2' OS.

Sign up for Quidco and get 4% cashback, making the price £208.31 :)

If you get one, you might want to pick up a £4.56 AppleCare for it too - http://www.microwarehouse.co.uk/catalogue/item/APPCAR37. Quidco there too, although only 1% for clearance items.
 
Thanks for the link.

So, what's the catch? If there isn't one then I'll be buying one of these today. I actually decided to buy one today already, but nowhere local has them in stock.
 
Wow thanks for the link. I've been looking on ebay for one for a few days now but at that price, it makes sense to buy from there :)

And with the HE discount at Apple I can get the Apple Care for £23 :D
 
How does this price compare to the Apple Store for Higher Education prices for the Apple TV?

I wonder if Apple plan to reduce the price of the Apple TV in Europe when they introduce movie (rentals) here…
 
I've ordered it. Seems to be the cheapest available at the moment by a fair distance. I nearly drove through to Glasgow this morning to pick one up from the Apple store for £269.
 
Ive also ordered it.

It does seem too good to be true, but i cant find anything to suggest it isnt the latest (and possibly only) model for the 160 gig version.

Yes, i imagine Apple will drop the price at some stage, but not until the price can be subsidised by rental income. In the US the price dropped by $70 if memory serves me correct so factoring vat etc etc you are looking at a £25, possibly £30 price drop in the UK to maybe £239.

It is a bargain, and of course when it arrives if it isnt what you want just return it within 14 days under the distance selling regs for a full refund
 
I'm with you too!

Just ordered as well (using a credit card for extra consumer protection) no need for AppleCare really… it's covered by the Consumer Credit Act as it's over £100.
 
I have been tempted to order this simply because of the low price and not because I actually want one! it does seem very odd that Play.com are advertising exactly the same product with 2 completely different prices, but hey I'm not complaining.

If you've got a spare £216 lying around then I say go for it, but just remember that Play.com only have to honour that price after they have charged you i.e. after the contract has been formed, I only say this because there have been a number of instances where Play.com have advertised items at the wrong price and have gotten away with it.
 
I was wondering if its because they're clearing their stock of the "old" units, ready for the new ones which will ship with the updated firmware? A few places I called yesterday didn't have any in stock at all while John Lewis previously had the 160Gb model for £199 on their website while also having one at £269 which was out of stock.

You're right though, until its shipped, I won't be counting my chickens!
 
ascender said:
I was wondering if its because they're clearing their stock of the "old" units, ready for the new ones which will ship with the updated firmware? A few places I called yesterday didn't have any in stock at all while John Lewis previously had the 160Gb model for £199 on their website while also having one at £269 which was out of stock.

You're right though, until its shipped, I won't be counting my chickens!
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong I'm certainly not trying to rain on your parade, I would hope that if Play.com had made a pricing error that they would have corrected it by now. I recently purchased a Nokia N800 Internet Tablet from them which was heavily reduced in price due to the release of the N810, but for a time they had 2 N800s available; 1 discounted at £149.99 and 1 at the considerably higher RRP.

Apparently it's all to do with different SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) numbers i.e. a product on promotion will have a completely different SKU to an identical product not on promotion, or so I'm told :confused:

If a particular product has an MRP of x and there is a revision in price, say the price now becomes y. Then x and y will have to be stocked separately and billed separately so they become two different SKUs.
Click to expand...

Courtesy of Wikipedia ;)

Anyway, I hope your ATV turns up!
 
Barney6871 said:
This seems a bit of a bargain on Play.Com

Check out

http://www.play.com/Search.aspx?sea...=apple+tv&page=search&pa=search&go.x=0&go.y=0

They list the 160gb TV for £216, but also list it at a whopping £289

Is there a difference in the models? The model number on the £216 one is listed as MB189B/A. In the UK Apple Store the 160gb model is listed as MB189.

Am i right in thinking the £216 one on Play.Com is the current Apple TV and represents (for those of us in the UK) a right bloody bargain, given its £53 ($100) cheaper than the list price.

Any observations would be welcome.
Click to expand...

Why is this viewed as a bargain when you can buy it directly from Apple in the states at $329 US. 216 in pounds is around 425 US. So you are paying 100 more. Why not just ask a friend to bring one back from the states next time and save 100 more. What am i missing
 
MST said:
Don't get me wrong I'm certainly not trying to rain on your parade, I would hope that if Play.com had made a pricing error that they would have corrected it by now. I recently purchased a Nokia N800 Internet Tablet from them which was heavily reduced in price due to the release of the N810, but for a time they had 2 N800s available; 1 discounted at £149.99 and 1 at the considerably higher RRP.

Apparently it's all to do with different SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) numbers i.e. a product on promotion will have a completely different SKU to an identical product not on promotion, or so I'm told :confused:

Courtesy of Wikipedia ;)

Anyway, I hope your ATV turns up!
Click to expand...

Me too!

I know you weren't trying to be negative for the sake of it, I think its a legitimate concern/question these days. I'm hoping the price is genuine and let's face it, its not a massive error if it is the wrong price. John Lewis had a 160Gb version on their website showing for £199 yesterday but didn't have any stock. They also had a £269 version and when I called, the descriptions of them were both identical.

So I'm as confused as the next person really! I'll keep an eye on the Play order and let you know how its progressing. If at all!
 
As i had said in an earlier post, yes, the price is likely to drop at some stage later in the year, but not significantly. There was a $70 price drop in the US which will translate through to possibly a £25 drop in the UK if we are lucky....but rental revenue in the UK wont come close to what it may possibly be in the US so dont count on a reduction in price.

Rocketboy - yes, agreed, it isnt a bargain compared with the US price, but we arent in the US. My brother is going to NY in March and could easily pick one up for me, but if you have ever picked up the box its heavier than you would imagine and $329 will come out at £175 plus the cost of a power lead so call it £180.

If my brother then gets lifted in customs walking through carrying an apple TV i will have a further £30 in vat to pay plus any penalty. The saving isnt massive. At best you save £35....at worst you are worse off if you get stopped in customs.

Initially i thought that it was priced accordingly as Play were expecting more uptodate models, i.e, with the software update, but they are selling the same model at £289 so who knows. Its possibly a pricing error, so we will see, but i think the bottom line is if you want one of these you are not going to find it any cheaper.
 
Sorry....just as a quick aside, keep your eye on play generally for Apple products.

They were selling Leopard for £10 less than Apple and the same for iwork - havent checked if they still are but they were when i bought mine.

Also, they had the aluminium wireless keyboard for £39 compared to everyone else, including Apple, selling it at £49. It was at that price for about a week before moving up to £49.

They are worth checking out if you are buying software or peripherals
 
Barney6871 said:
As i had said in an earlier post, yes, the price is likely to drop at some stage later in the year, but not significantly. There was a $70 price drop in the US which will translate through to possibly a £25 drop in the UK if we are lucky.
Click to expand...

Possibly. There is also the possibility that the low sales of Apple TV (it doesn't offer what most people want in the UK) will mean Apple have to drop the price to be competitive.

Who knows but, yes, the bottom line is that it's £216 in Play now and if it is a device you want then you should get on it now.
 
emotion said:
Possibly. There is also the possibility that the low sales of Apple TV (it doesn't offer what most people want in the UK) will mean Apple have to drop the price to be competitive.

Who knows but, yes, the bottom line is that it's £216 in Play now and if it is a device you want then you should get on it now.
Click to expand...

I was undecided about Apple TV before reading this thread, and I just put an order in at Play.com for the 160GB model. I also took 'DarenSW's advice and signed up for Quidco and got 4% cashback, making the price £208.31. Can't wait for it to arrive now.

Can anyone help with info on how to enable Divx, Avi, etc file playback?

Thanks in advance.

Alan.
 
The HDMI cables I ordered are now "packing" but the Apple TV has gone to "awaiting stock". So much for that then!
 
No longer listed on the site. They pulled the same stunt with the 60GB PS3'S about three weeks ago. Said it was a mistake and didn't honour it.
 
rocketboy said:
Why is this viewed as a bargain when you can buy it directly from Apple in the states at $329 US. 216 in pounds is around 425 US. So you are paying 100 more. Why not just ask a friend to bring one back from the states next time and save 100 more. What am i missing
Click to expand...

I'm fairly sure that the US Apple Store won't ship to other countries. I doubt many people just happen to have friends going to the US at the time when they want to buy an Apple TV. There's also the issue of warranty.
 
ascender said:
The HDMI cables I ordered are now "packing" but the Apple TV has gone to "awaiting stock". So much for that then!
Click to expand...

My order has the status 'order taken'. I ordered yesterday ( 3rd Feb ). Sparced is right, it is no longer listed on the site, so it must have been a pricing mistake I imagine.

Fingers still crossed, my order is honored!
 
Yip, I'm just canceling this at the moment. They've said that Apple have pulled it and its replaced with a new product which is identical, for £289.99.

So pretty much as expected then :)

Still, at least I've got a couple of HDMI cables on their way to me, they'll be handy.....
 
So, where's the best place to pick this up from now?!

Play aren't the only ones with "different" models of Apple TV for different prices, despite the fact they're the same thing :)

I don't understand this tbh. I could understand it if Take 2 had been released and Apple were refreshing the stocks, but as that's not available, I wonder what's going on?
 
ascender said:
Yip, I'm just canceling this at the moment. They've said that Apple have pulled it and its replaced with a new product which is identical, for £289.99.

So pretty much as expected then :)

Still, at least I've got a couple of HDMI cables on their way to me, they'll be handy.....
Click to expand...

My order status is still 'order taken'. Did Play.com contact you Ascender?

John lewis still have it listed on their site for £199 but it is out of stock.

I have friends in the states so I am tempted to ask them to send one over if the play.co order dosen't pan out. Current exchange rates makes the 160GB ($329) £170, which leaves plenty of lea way for postage costs. Is the US spec any different except for the mains cable? I know their TV system is different.
 
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