[willed]

Like a lot of people out there, I need a new Mac for university, which starts in September. As we know, Leopard will ship in October... Will I have to pay £££ for the new OS a month after shelling out for a Mac, or does Apple ever offer free upgrades in such situations?

I remember my current computer (iBook G3 500) came with 9.2 installed, 10.0 on a disk and then got a free upgrade to 10.1 when it came out (as 10.0 was unuseable!)

[Peter]

you usually get a free upgrade if you purchase within a month or so, if not - give them a call and they usually bend over and ship you one

[Person Man]

You get a free* upgrade if you buy the earlier OS (or a computer with the earlier OS preinstalled) after the shipping date of the newer version is announced. Nothing before that.

* free with $19.95 shipping & handling fee.

[Mister Elf]

Originally Posted by willed 

I remember my current computer (iBook G3 500) came with 9.2 installed, 10.0 on a disk and then got a free upgrade to 10.1 when it came out (as 10.0 was unuseable!)

10.1 was, as you said, only offered for free because 10.0 was so unusable. No OS upgrade since has been offered for anything less than full price (with the exception of a Jaguar promotion for teachers).

[Eriamjh]

Originally Posted by Person Man 

You get a free* upgrade if you buy the earlier OS (or a computer with the earlier OS preinstalled) after the shipping date of the newer version is announced. Nothing before that.

* free with $19.95 shipping & handling fee.

That is true. If you buy the day before it is announced for sale, you're SOL.

[Oversoul]

I think the point is obvious, but should probably be made. That Apple "announced" Leopard will be available sometime is "October" does not count as an official announcement.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by willed 

Like a lot of people out there, I need a new Mac for university, which starts in September. As we know, Leopard will ship in October... Will I have to pay £££ for the new OS a month after shelling out for a Mac, or does Apple ever offer free upgrades in such situations?

Generally, the "free with $20 S&H" period is about 6 weeks, so I'd expect announcement of a firm shipping date and beginning of the grace period at the MacWorld Expo in Paris in September.

Also, if you're at university, in whatever function, you generally don't pay "£££", but rather "£", seeing as the education discount is usually rather hefty, and often absurd, depending upon whether your uni has struck up a special deal with Apple or not.

[willed]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Generally, the "free with $20 S&H" period is about 6 weeks, so I'd expect announcement of a firm shipping date and beginning of the grace period at the MacWorld Expo in Paris in September.

Also, if you're at university, in whatever function, you generally don't pay "£££", but rather "£", seeing as the education discount is usually rather hefty, and often absurd, depending upon whether your uni has struck up a special deal with Apple or not.

Haha, absolutely, although it's still a lot when you're funding yourself. Can't complain on the Apple Education discounts though. THanks for the info guys.

[Person Man]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Generally, the "free with $20 S&H" period is about 6 weeks, so I'd expect announcement of a firm shipping date and beginning of the grace period at the MacWorld Expo in Paris in September.

Also, if you're at university, in whatever function, you generally don't pay "£££", but rather "£", seeing as the education discount is usually rather hefty, and often absurd, depending upon whether your uni has struck up a special deal with Apple or not.

Just checked on prices: £89 for regular price, and £58.75 for education discount. At current exchange rates, that works out to $175.61 for regular and $115.92 for education. Ours are $129 and $69, respectively.

[analogika]

That includes 17.5% VAT, FYI, so that's $149 and $99.

[Goldfinger]

Originally Posted by analogika 

That includes 17.5% VAT, FYI, so that's $149 and $99.

Meaning they are still getting screwed

[analogika]

Pretty much all electronics and software are more expensive in Europe than they are in the U.S. - costs of running a business are much higher here.

Though Britain appears to get knocked on rather more than the rest of Europe, at least wrt Apple pricing.