Buy a MBP now or wait with the risk of paying more?

Hi all,

I am considering to buy a MBP 15'' (it will be my first Mac computer),
but I must have it in my hands in the next 15 days (without getting into too much detail, the reason is that otherwise I will have to pay the VAT,
which is about 20% of the total price).

If I order the current MBP model (i.e., the one with the Merom processor) from the online Apple store, I can have it in 3 days, which is just fine.

Suppose, however, that I risk waiting for the new MBP 15'', which will
probably be announced in Macworld in a few days.

My question is the following one:
if the new MBP is indeed announced and its delivery time (from the online Apple store) is longer than 15 days, will I then still be able to order the current model or will that model be discontinued automatically?
What is your advice, order now or wait a few days with the possible risk of
having to pay more?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

First of all the new MBP is not merom it is Penryn, but the one right now is still 65nm, not 45nm which is coming out on the refresh. And the new one should not have much of a performance increase so i would get it for cheaper, instead of minor performance boost.

 

You would probably not be able to get the old version of the notebook as it will be replaced with the new one. I'm not sure what the lead time is between switching from the old to the new notebook on Apple's website but they are usually pretty quick.

Do you have to have the notebook in 15 days or just have a receipt?

 

The next refresh is still a core 2 duo i think. The current cpu in the mbp is still fast so its up to you.

 

I have to have the notebook in 15 days.

The only reason that I would prefer the new MBP is not because it's faster
(I know that the boost in performance will be negligible), but because it
might generate less heat.

 

I doubt the new cores will make a big difference in temperatures. If you really want to save the money then go for it now. It would give you a comfortable cushion for the 15 days. The new MBP will probably have be in large demand when Apple annouces it so shipping times will most likely be longer than usual.

 

Thanks for your help.

I will then go for the current MBP.

 

I don't think the new MBP will have any price change, but yes, it will probably have high demand and we don't necessarily know if it will be announced right at Macworld or maybe one or two weeks later. Just get one now, considering how small of a timeframe you have to get it