I called Apple today and, with the sternest voice I could muster at 10:00 am, asked that the company “remedy” the situation described below. They did. Apple provided a refund of their calculated difference (albeit, it’s less than my own calculation) for the G4 then and the G4 now. Once more, I hand it to Apple for being customer-savvy.
What I don’t quite understand is why Apple, and other software and hardware manufacturers, cannot stick to an annual schedule or at least a public, published one whereby folks can decide whether to purchase Pumpkin XYY before Pumpkin XYZ comes out. Car manufacturers do this and the transparency of knowing the value of your “older” product provides car dealers and their customers massive price and stocking leverage. It also demonstrates a more serious, mature pricing system than just “surprising” folks about the latest and greatest when the new product may not even be available, as Apple has done. I’m all for interesting marketing techniques and means to generate buzz, but isn’t it time for technology manufacturers to grow up?