Crazy to wait for 2019 iMacs refurbs?

[scarylarry]

Hello all. So, I am finally ready to buy my first iMac, and I'm going to spec it out in order to future-proof it as much as possible. I'm coming from a 2013 MBA, and typically go at least this long between computers, so more is better when I do buy.

My question is this: any idea at all when the 2019 iMacs will start hitting the Apple refurb store? I know they literally just got released, so I wouldn't expect them now. However, I can wait a few months for a discount if they'll probably hit the refurb store sometime in the summer. I probably wouldn't want to wait longer than that.

Bonus question! I work for a university, so I get an .edu discount. It's my understanding that apple refurbs tend to be even cheaper than new computers bought with the .edu discount. I realize you can't get special .edu pricing on top of the refurbished price cut. I guess I'm just asking because there's no sense in waiting for refurbs if the discount I'm already getting would be about the same.

Thanks so much for your help! This is a huge monetary investment for me, so every dollar saved helps.

 

[dcpmark]

Hello all. So, I am finally ready to buy my first iMac, and I'm going to spec it out in order to future-proof it as much as possible. I'm coming from a 2013 MBA, and typically go at least this long between computers, so more is better when I do buy.

My question is this: any idea at all when the 2019 iMacs will start hitting the Apple refurb store? I know they literally just got released, so I wouldn't expect them now. However, I can wait a few months for a discount if they'll probably hit the refurb store sometime in the summer. I probably wouldn't want to wait longer than that.

Bonus question! I work for a university, so I get an .edu discount. It's my understanding that apple refurbs tend to be even cheaper than new computers bought with the .edu discount. I realize you can't get special .edu pricing on top of the refurbished price cut. I guess I'm just asking because there's no sense in waiting for refurbs if the discount I'm already getting would be about the same.

Thanks so much for your help! This is a huge monetary investment for me, so every dollar saved helps.

When I priced out a refurb iMac Pro, they were the exact same price in the Edu store as in the regular store. You just get less of a discount. YMMV.

 

[jerwin]

isn't the standard refurb discount about 15 percent?

 

[Bohemien]

isn't the standard refurb discount about 15 percent?

Yes.

My question is this: any idea at all when the 2019 iMacs will start hitting the Apple refurb store? This is a huge monetary investment for me, so every dollar saved helps.

The edu discount is 10%, so your choice: you get a new iMac that you configured to your needs with 10% discount or find one in the refurbished section at 15% discount. I've bought refurbished twice so far and it was a good experience, my current MBP was listed for 8GB RAM and came with 16.

Usually the first refurbs hit the store 3-6 months after release of the new Mac. Only downside: you'll have to wait until the exact configuration you want comes along. And of course the 15% refurb discount is deducted from the original price, so if you find a machine with a RAM upgrade, you still pay 85% of Apple's outrageous RAM prices.

 

[jerwin]

Occasionally better discounts can be had from (non Apple) retail stores, but most of them will not "stock" the i9 variant, or the Vega variant, or any models with SSDs.

 

[cylack]

Try to find your model at a store that doesn't charge sales tax, which is a significant amount. You can save from buying from such a store instead of directly from Apple, which charges sales tax.

 

[scarylarry]

Try to find your model at a store that doesn't charge sales tax, which is a significant amount. You can save from buying from such a store instead of directly from Apple, which charges sales tax.

Definitely a good idea, but I don't think I can use the edu discount at a third party retailer, right? So the tax savings might be cancelled out by that. Also, I'm in NY, so I do have to pay tax at places like Adorama....

 

[cylack]

There are third party sellers on Amazon that don't charge sales tax either. For example, there is a third party seller selling the base imac pro for $4650 and not charging sales tax.

Definitely a good idea, but I don't think I can use the edu discount at a third party retailer, right? So the tax savings might be cancelled out by that. Also, I'm in NY, so I do have to pay tax at places like Adorama....

 

[jerwin]

you might be able to find something cheaper around memorial day.

 

[Shivetya]

the best reason to wait, hopefully the new Mac Pro will be out

 

[mikehalloran]

isn't the standard refurb discount about 15 percent?

No. It can be but that is not a given nor is it to be expected.
[doublepost=1555564268][/doublepost]

When I priced out a refurb iMac Pro, they were the exact same price in the Edu store as in the regular store. You just get less of a discount. YMMV.

I’ve a daughter at UOP and my wife is a teacher at a local school district.

The EDU price on the base iMac Pro is $4,599. The Refurb price is $4,249.

You were saying?
[doublepost=1555564807][/doublepost]With actual refurbs, they come and go. The first i9 iMacs will show up as returns become available. Watch every day, pounce immediately when you see one. Blink or hesitate and it’s gone.

Every once in awhile, Apple will keep a model always available making it a nice way to get that computer at a discount. The base model iMac Pro is one of them currently. An actual refurbished unit may sneak in but most are brand new. Same warranty and you can add AppleCare.

 

[sparkhill]

I would just buy what you want now with your .edu discount. Upgrade the RAM yourself. That’s exactly what I did.

 

[dcpmark]

The EDU price on the base iMac Pro is $4,599. The Refurb price is $4,249.

You were saying?

You misunderstood my post because I wasn’t very clear. The OP mentioned that he thought you could not get EDU discount on top of a refurb price, so my post was just confirming that. There are refurb iMac Pros available in BOTH the Apple Edu Store and the regular Apple Store. Both were priced the same.....$4,249. I was hoping that a refurb iMac Pros would be cheaper in the Edu Store than in the regular store because of the $400 discount over the regular price for a new one, but they were same price.

 

[macduke]

From what I've noticed the higher end refurbs take a while to make it onto the store because they have to collect enough to put them up for sale and sometimes they can go quickly once they do appear. You're also less likely to get just the right setup you want. Like there might be some that have Vega 48, some that have i9, but they might not have both, or they might have both, but without the SSD size you want, etc.

I wonder if there is a site that sends alerts when certain refurb models become available? Otherwise you'll be checking that all the time. My advice is to just use your EDU discount to get exactly what you want. If you get the Apple Card you get what, like 3% off? That wasn't a thing when I preordered mine but I also work in higher ed and got the discount and then put it on the Barclay card 18 months 0% and I'm leaving the money in my investment account which will probably keep going up for a while, probably covering 5% over the next 18 months since market conditions are still positive. If things start to go south in a big way I'll pull out the money and just pay it off.

 

[mikehalloran]

You misunderstood my post because I wasn’t very clear. The OP mentioned that he thought you could not get EDU discount on top of a refurb price, so my post was just confirming that. There are refurb iMac Pros available in BOTH the Apple Edu Store and the regular Apple Store. Both were priced the same.....$4,249. I was hoping that a refurb iMac Pros would be cheaper in the Edu Store than in the regular store because of the $400 discount over the regular price for a new one, but they were same price.

I get you. That’s close but not quite correct. You can buy refurbs through the EDU store now but it’s still the Refurb Store. You always could before but had to call the 800# to get it on the same invoice (dad of college kids going on 15 years, now). Now it’s easy to get it on the same bill. The savings is only $10 these days on AppleCare — used to be $30–50 depending on the Mac. Still, $10 buys me lunch.

The really good deal in the EDU store is the Pro Apps Bundle for $199 that includes Logic/FinalCut/Compressor/MainStage etc. You don’t need to bundle it with hardware—it’s available separately. After the purchase you are emailed 5 codes that you enter while logged into the App Store—the downloads begin and you are automatically registered. If, say, you only need FCP ($100 savings right there), you can email the other 4 codes to others (I asked the App Store if you could do this and they said, yes—go ahead).

 

[mikehalloran]

I wonder if there is a site that sends alerts when certain refurb models become available? Otherwise you'll be checking that all the time.

That would be way cool. I got quite used to checking the Refurb Store on a regular basis. I wanted a 2nd gen iMac Pro with AppleCare after my 1st gen died. Took awhile but the one I wanted finally showed up. It wasn't the headphone jack—I'm in total agreement with Apple's decision to dump it—my accessories were not going to work with the 3rd gen and the 2nd does everything I need for far less $$$.

 

[fstevens]

Try signing up at https://refurb-tracker.com/. There’s enough detail in the email notifications to tell if it’s worth going to the Apple refurb site to see the exact specs.