Any Issue Purchasing from Amazon?

[SlickTheCat]

I am soon to be a new iMac convert from a pc. I can't decide to purchase the latest and greatest model or to get the most recently replaced version from Amazon - when you put in the tax savings, $100 rebate and free shipping - it is a very enticing offer.

Are there any issues I should be aware of before purchasing an iMac from Amazon?

 

[dborja]

I am soon to be a new iMac convert from a pc. I can't decide to purchase the latest and greatest model or to get the most recently replaced version from Amazon - when you put in the tax savings, $100 rebate and free shipping - it is a very enticing offer.

Are there any issues I should be aware of before purchasing an iMac from Amazon?

I bought a new iBook from Amazon two years ago and saved at least $200 with a similar deal ($100 rebate, no tax, free shipping). No issues with warranty. I noticed a misalignment on the case and brought it to an Apple store and they replaced it with no problem after I showed my Amazon receipt to prove it was purchased within the warranty period. Just be aware that they ship with signature required. In my case, I left a note on my door to deliver to my neighbor, whose mom was home all day...

 

[rediffusion]

I bought a new iBook from Amazon two years ago and saved at least $200 with a similar deal ($100 rebate, no tax, free shipping). No issues with warranty. I noticed a misalignment on the case and brought it to an Apple store and they replaced it with no problem after I showed my Amazon receipt to prove it was purchased within the warranty period. Just be aware that they ship with signature required. In my case, I left a note on my door to deliver to my neighbor, whose mom was home all day...

can you configure iMacs ordered from Amazon? I wanted to get a 750gb hard drive

 

[dborja]

can you configure iMacs ordered from Amazon? I wanted to get a 750gb hard drive

I don't think you can custom-build them from Amazon...

 

[CanadaRAM]

In general, if you purchase from Amazon or MacMall, you have to deal with them for return for refund or replacement if you are not happy with your machine or if it arrives defective.

Apple themselves will not acccept returns of machines purchased from resellers. Apple will handle issues as a warranty repair only.

 

[mreg376]

I am soon to be a new iMac convert from a pc. I can't decide to purchase the latest and greatest model or to get the most recently replaced version from Amazon - when you put in the tax savings, $100 rebate and free shipping - it is a very enticing offer.

Are there any issues I should be aware of before purchasing an iMac from Amazon?

None. I've bought both an Imac and Macbook from Amazon. Between the rebate and no sales tax (and free shipping just like Apple) the final cost was about $400 less for the two Macs than buying from Apple. And I've always found Amazon customer service to be superb. The only "issue" is that they offer what they offer -- there's no custom-building. But that's probably why they can do better on the prices. And the free shipping is FAST.

 

[qtx43]

I am soon to be a new iMac convert from a pc. I can't decide to purchase the latest and greatest model or to get the most recently replaced version from Amazon - when you put in the tax savings, $100 rebate and free shipping - it is a very enticing offer.

Are there any issues I should be aware of before purchasing an iMac from Amazon?

I hate to be a spoilsport, but just because Amazon may not be required to collect sales tax in many states (where they don't have a physical presence), does not mean you aren't legally required to pay taxes. It may be unlikely at this point in time, but if the government finds out you are filing fraudulent tax returns it will come back to bite you. So, if you're determined to be a criminal, don't be taking any business deductions on that new computer, because if you get audited you're screwed.

 

[mreg376]

I hate to be a spoilsport, but just because Amazon may not be required to collect sales tax in many states (where they don't have a physical presence), does not mean you aren't legally required to pay taxes. It may be unlikely at this point in time, but if the government finds out you are filing fraudulent tax returns it will come back to bite you. So, if you're determined to be a criminal, don't be taking any business deductions on that new computer, because if you get audited you're screwed.

You're being overly dramatic and needlessly alarmist. Not all states have use taxes, which is why many states are threatening to require vendors like Amazon to collect sales taxes. So accusing people on this board of committing tax fraud by buying from Amazon is inappropriate. And to further try to scare people into not taking business deductions when they lawfully purchase a computer from an authorized reseller for legitimate business purposes is misleading and disingenuous. It's especially ridiculous when you consider that purchasing equipment for business use is exempt from sales tax anyway. Keep your misplaced attempt at legal advice to yourself.

 

[Thigh66]

Got My Mini from Amzon

fantastic experience

 

[aross99]

I have purchased a number of Mac's and MacBook's from Amazon over the years. Never had a problem and when they are running rebates, the prices can't be beat...

 

[flyfish29]

It's especially ridiculous when you consider that purchasing equipment for business use is exempt from sales tax anyway. Keep your misplaced attempt at legal advice to yourself.

What is ridiculous is to say businesses can buy equipment tax free...in what fantasy world? Legal advice should just stop now...non-profits might be able to, but for-profit businesses must pay taxes in states that collect taxes.

About Amazon, I don't know anyone who has been screwed by Amazon on anything they have bought there- I think Amazon is what makes the Internet a wonderful place to shop! They know how to do things right!

Good Luck with your new Mac purchase however you acquire your wonderful machine!

 

[AppleFan360]

I purchased my iMac, Macbook and Time Capsule through Amazon. No issue at all and very quick shipping. If something goes wrong, returning an item is very easy so no worries.

 

[qtx43]

You're being overly dramatic and needlessly alarmist. Not all states have use taxes, which is why many states are threatening to require vendors like Amazon to collect sales taxes. So accusing people on this board of committing tax fraud by buying from Amazon is inappropriate. And to further try to scare people into not taking business deductions when they lawfully purchase a computer from an authorized reseller for legitimate business purposes is misleading and disingenuous. It's especially ridiculous when you consider that purchasing equipment for business use is exempt from sales tax anyway. Keep your misplaced attempt at legal advice to yourself.

It's true, I am not a lawyer, but if you think it's legal to make purchases without paying sales tax then I suggest you do get a lawyer's advice. And true, there are a couple of states that don't have sales tax, but the vast majority do. And people who cheat on their taxes shift the tax burden to *me*. So rather than being "overly dramatic" I would say I'm a little bit pissed off at people who knowingly file fraudulent tax returns.

 

[mreg376]

It's true, I am not a lawyer, but if you think it's legal to make purchases without paying sales tax then I suggest you do get a lawyer's advice. And true, there are a couple of states that don't have sales tax, but the vast majority do. And people who cheat on their taxes shift the tax burden to *me*. So rather than being "overly dramatic" I would say I'm a little bit pissed off at people who knowingly file fraudulent tax returns.

It is perfectly legal to make purchases on line without paying sales tax at the time of purchase. So buying from Amazon is legal and does not deserve mindless and automatic derision. And not paying sales or use tax on business purchases is also perfectly legal. So go ahead and be angry at persons unknown, based on not knowing what they are doing on their taxes, because you think it has some unknown impact on you. However, you may instead want to stop accusing people on this board of being criminals based on absolutely no facts whatsoever, and worry more about the "burden" on you of the hundreds of billions of dollars we're spending in Iraq.

 

[qtx43]

It is perfectly legal to make purchases on line without paying sales tax at the time of purchase. So buying from Amazon is legal and does not deserve mindless and automatic derision. And not paying sales or use tax on business purchases is also perfectly legal. So go ahead and be angry at persons unknown, based on not knowing what they are doing on their taxes, because you think it has some unknown impact on you. However, you may instead want to stop accusing people on this board of being criminals based on absolutely no facts whatsoever, and worry more about the "burden" on you of the hundreds of billions of dollars we're spending in Iraq.

Usually only resellers don't have to pay sales tax, if a business actually uses the equipment, they have to pay tax. I don't know what fantasy land you're living in (apparently one where you can read my mind about what I think about Iraq) but in a lot of states filing a fraudulent tax return is a felony. State AGs like to make examples of one big offender and send him off to jail to get others to comply. But it's true, laws vary a lot from state to state, even by county and city, so I think telling somebody that they can save hundreds by not paying taxes is the dangerous "legal advice". I'm the one saying you need to get actual legal advice if you think you don't have to pay taxes. In my state, when you file tax returns it's actually on the form (even though people ignore it). Some make you file a special form. And most states make the sales and use tax the same. But I'm just talking generically, most of the time. Yes, by all means, find out what the actual laws are in your locality. And yes, I was being too absolutist in my initial post, there are (I think 4 or 5) states with no sales/use tax.

 

[hdpaul]

In general, if you purchase from Amazon or MacMall, you have to deal with them for return for refund or replacement if you are not happy with your machine or if it arrives defective.

Apple themselves will not accept returns of machines purchased from resellers. Apple will handle issues as a warranty repair only.

I purchased from Amazon and had issues with my imac intermitantly shutting down back in Nov. Long story short, the Apple service was not very responsive, especially when it came to issues involving replacement. After 2 1/2 months of back and forth between Apple, and Amazon, I ended up returning the imac to Amazon. Luckily, it was around Christmas and the return policy was 90 days at that time. The Amazon people were very difficult to deal with. They kept promising UPS pick-up which never happened, and email labels which never came. Finally, I just shipped it myself at about day 80 and they ended up refunding the purchase and most of the shipping.

Amazon is great, but if you have serious service problems, be prepared to deal with them and not Apple. I just placed my new imac order with Apple on-line. As far as the sales tax, I went through discovercard and they will give you a 5% card cashback on Apple on-line which covers the taxes depending on where you live.

 

[mreg376]

Usually only resellers don't have to pay sales tax, if a business actually uses the equipment, they have to pay tax. I don't know what fantasy land you're living in (apparently one where you can read my mind about what I think about Iraq) but in a lot of states filing a fraudulent tax return is a felony. State AGs like to make examples of one big offender and send him off to jail to get others to comply. But it's true, laws vary a lot from state to state, even by county and city, so I think telling somebody that they can save hundreds by not paying taxes is the dangerous "legal advice". I'm the one saying you need to get actual legal advice if you think you don't have to pay taxes. In my state, when you file tax returns it's actually on the form (even though people ignore it). Some make you file a special form. And most states make the sales and use tax the same. But I'm just talking generically, most of the time. Yes, by all means, find out what the actual laws are in your locality. And yes, I was being too absolutist in my initial post, there are (I think 4 or 5) states with no sales/use tax.

I didn't say anything about having to pay sales taxes or not. You're doing all the talking and deciding what others are doing. All I'm saying is that accusing people of tax fraud just because they're buying from Amazon is idiotic.

 

[kleef]

In California, if you buy from an out-of-state retailer with no "brick and mortar" store within the state, you don't get charged sales tax at the online site. For individual (non-business) purchases at least, you are supposed to report it on the state tax form. It's a "use tax." The reality is that practically nobody does this, and it's not generally enforced at this time (It's too difficult to enforce). It could come up if you're audited for something else, and you could end up paying penalties (that doesn't mean jail time!). Theoretically, auditors can require you to produce credit card statements etc, and they can scour to find online purchases. From time-to-time legislation is introduced to add the tax automatically to the online purchase. So far that kind of legislation has passed only for the "brick and mortar" stores (such as Circuit City). I am speaking about California. At this point I think of this as a moral issue. You can be one of the 99.99% of people who don't pay this tax, or one of the .01% who do, and have a clear moral concience. You do the math.

 

[mreg376]

In California, if you buy from an out-of-state retailer with no "brick and mortar" store within the state, you don't get charged sales tax at the online site. For individual (non-business) purchases at least, you are supposed to report it on the state tax form. It's a "use tax." The reality is that practically nobody does this, and it's not generally enforced at this time (It's too difficult to enforce). It could come up if you're audited for something else, and you could end up paying penalties (that doesn't mean jail time!). Theoretically, auditors can require you to produce credit card statements etc, and they can scour to find online purchases. From time-to-time legislation is introduced to add the tax automatically to the online purchase. So far that kind of legislation has passed only for the "brick and mortar" stores (such as Circuit City). I am speaking about California. At this point I think of this as a moral issue. You can be one of the 99.99% of people who don't pay this tax, or one of the .01% who do, and have a clear moral concience. You do the math.

Same exact situation in New York. But if you happen to be one of the 99.99%, newbie qtx43 would brand you a tax fraud and criminal, and a personal "burden" on him (or her?).

 

[kleef]

Same exact situation in New York. But if you happen to be one of the 99.99%, newbie qtx43 would brand you a tax fraud and criminal, and a personal "burden" on him (or her?).

yeah, that's one of the beauties of forums. These posts are opinions for the most part and have to be taken as such. I am sure that reading through this thread will give a reasonable person the right gist. It's obvious that no matter what is written in a thread, there is bound to be someone out there who will challenge or attack it.

 

[mets1125]

Sales tax goes to city and state. I wouldnt say someone not paying sales tax being a burden. Look at it this way, there are so many restaurants collecting tax on food purchases that they do not claim as income (if paying cash). . There are so many more businesses collecting tax from consumers and not claiming it. That is fraud IMO.