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Pianomankw · Oct 28, 2007, 11:44 PM

Hey, my dad was going to the allentown PA in about 2 weeks and i was going to get him to get a macbook up there with my student discount and then pay him because he said it was tax free in PA but i called the apple store there today to see if he could use my student discount (which he could) but they said it was 6% tax. Is there any place i can buy the macbook with the student discount taxfree? Anywhere online? Thanks a lot!

ghporter · Oct 29, 2007, 08:04 AM

Apple MUST collect sales tax in any state they have a physical store in. Which is probably all of 'em. Your best bet to avoid tax is to buy from an online reseller that doesn't have a brick-and-mortar store in your state. But then you probably won't get the student discount. At least the tax in PA is only 6%. In Texas it's over 7%, plus "locality tax rates," so in the ONLY Apple Store in San Antonio, I pay about 8.5% in tax.

chabig · Oct 29, 2007, 09:30 PM

You can buy it in Oregon, which has no sales tax.

rjt1000 · Oct 30, 2007, 10:03 PM

Wikipedia notes there is also no sales tax in Delaware. There is an Apple store in Newark, Delaware. (90 miles from Allentown, PA). Call them first to verify the sales tax, their student discount policy and availability of the items you want.

ShawnDC · Oct 30, 2007, 11:14 PM

Originally Posted by rjt1000

Wikipedia notes there is also no sales tax in Delaware. There is an Apple store in Newark, Delaware. (90 miles from Allentown, PA). Call them first to verify the sales tax, their student discount policy and availability of the items you want.

You should also calculate how much money in gas and tolls you would spend in order to avoid the tax...

Pianomankw · Oct 31, 2007, 01:44 PM

is this Newark, Delaware you speak of the same thing as Newark, NJ.....like Newark airport and everything...because that is where my dad usually flies into if it's the same thing...

Smillz · Oct 31, 2007, 03:23 PM

No I would assume they are different, and I wouldn't go to newark if you didn't have to. It's not the safest place to be..

rjt1000 · Oct 31, 2007, 08:37 PM

Originally Posted by Pianomankw

is this Newark, Delaware you speak of the same thing as Newark, NJ.....like Newark airport and everything...because that is where my dad usually flies into if it's the same thing...

No, Newark, Delaware and Newark, New Jersey are not the same. Check out google maps or mapquest.

slugslugslug · Oct 31, 2007, 11:07 PM

I got my iMac G5 in the Christiana Mall Apple Store in Newark, Delaware 2 years ago. It was tax free and I got the student discount. I don't see why it would've changed. I'm pretty sure any Apple Store will give you the discount w/valid student ID.

I'm hoping to head back over there day after Thanksgiving and pick up a MacBook or 2, if there are new ones out by then. I hear you could still get a student discount on top of the Black Friday sale price the last 2 years.

Cadaver · Nov 2, 2007, 12:01 AM

I work in Newark, DE, very close to the Apple store at the Christiana Mall. I've purchased 5 computers there (2.5GHz dual processor G5, iMac G5, MacBook Pro, Mac Pro, and a MacBook, plus two iPhones). DE has no state sales tax, and yes, you can use your student ID - University of Delaware is in the same town and the store is constantly filled with students.

And Newark, DE is not the same as Newark, NJ. In fact, "Newark" is pronounced differently. Newark, NJ is pronounced "New-werk" and Newark, DE is pronounced "New-Ark."

slugslugslug · Nov 3, 2007, 01:02 AM

Oh yeah, I should mention, too, that I'm a student at the University of Pennsylvania, and the folks at the Newark store didn't care that I wasn't local or that my school has an official Apple reseller.