Yesterday Apple announced it was lowering the price of its Apple TV but many fans around the world might suffer sticker shock once they take a look at the rest of Apple’s online store, as the company has raised prices considerably.
Those of you in Canada, New Zealand, parts of the EU and a few other countries might notice that Apple’s products have received a serious bump in prices overnight. For example, in Canada, a high-end MacBook Pro used to cost $2,449 CAD, while now, that price goes to $3,049. Meanwhile in France a basic MBP now starts at €2,249 up from €1,999.
At first glance this may look very fishy, or at least greedy on Apple’s part, but the reality is a bit different. Just as they’ve done previously, the company adjusted prices based on global currency rates which have seen some dramatic shifts in recent months.
For example the US dollar is much stronger in the global market while the Euro is at record lows. As such the company needed to adjust prices to reflect these new realities. Looking at the European MacBook Pro mentioned above we can see that back in September of last year, it was priced at around $2,578 – but that prices had slipped in recent month thanks to a declining euro to $2,158. Apple raised the prices enough to push that price back up to $2,428.
Of course, purchasing power around the world means that Apple can now produce their devices for much less than before while EU consumers, for example, will feel the pinch even more as the local currency suffers. But at the end of the day, Apple is a business out to make money, not to offer charity to ailing economies.
Via: MacRumors | Apple logo via GeekWire