Following hot on the heels of today’s iPad release date and pre-order news, Engadget reports that Apple has revealed the tax-inclusive prices of all iPads for the UK and Europe, which are as follows: Europe: 16GB WiFi-only €479 32GB WiFi-only €579 64GB WiFi-only €679 16GB WiFi+3G €579 32GB WiFi+3G €679 64GB WiFi+3G €779 UK: 16GB WiFi-only £429 32GB WiFi-only £499 64GB WiFi-only £599 16GB WiFi+3G £529 32GB WiFi+3G £599 64GB WiFi+3G £699 British newspapers such as the Daily Mail and The Times have wasted no time in pointing out that the iPad will cost approximately £80 more than it does in the States, with the Mail citing this as another example of “Rip-off Britainâ€. And continuing on that theme, UK mobile operator Orange is the first to announce its data plans for the iPad Wi-Fi + 3G, for customers in the UK, France, Spain and Switzerland. Customers can choose from a simple “Pay monthly for what you use†plan of 5p per MB, or one of four money-saving bundles for more planned or frequent use: iPad Daily- £2 for up to 200MB iPad Weekly - £7.50 for up to 1GB iPad Monthly 15 (recurring) - £15 for up to 3GB + unlimited browsing at Wi-Fi hotspots iPad Monthly 25 (recurring) - £25 for up to 10GB + unlimited browsing at Wi-Fit hotspots (Thanks to forum member Zorban for the heads- up) By Maura Sutton, iPadForums.net Source: iPad international launch is go on May 28 (update: pricing) -- Engadget
When they calculate the cost of the iPad in the US, they don't include state sales tax or the tax that the government puts on the money that the consumer is purchasing it with - Capital Gains Tax, Federal Income Tax, State Income Tax, Inheritance Tax I don't think that they are comparing Apples to Apples here. And to top it all off the U.K. currency is worth more than the U.S. dollar.