Ah, good point. I tend to forget that European prices typically include VAT.
In Indiana (7% tax), that $999 13 Pro becomes $1068.93. In Texas (at least in the suburban area north of Dallas — they might vary slightly by county), that $999 is really $1081.42 (8.25% tax).
That eats up some of the difference Ulli’s seeing, but not all of it.
Nope!
I included the VAT at the prices I set into the (BRACKETS)!
And BTW, not everywhere in the US you even have to pay VAT, as fas as I remember.
Noting that VAT and sales tax are different (but related) things. The EU, by my understanding, requires VAT to be included in the “sticker price”, which isn’t true for sales tax in the US.
If Apple did sticker prices in the US the same way they do for Europe (sales tax built in, presumably at the highest state sales tax rate) that $799 USD would be about $856. That narrows the gap somewhat.
Then add in EU-specific legal requirements (i.e. a required two-year hardware guarantee as opposed to a single year), import duties, and the situation where Apple prices products at the beginning of a year and keeps them level over the course of the year, and it’s still higher - but not by nearly as much.
For example, as of yesterday, that 899 Euro iPhone 13 was about 888 USD, which is about $30 over the US equivalent. The Euro was been devaluing against the dollar at the time of the iPhone rollout, and has been devaluing more since. So to me it seems like Apple made some economic predictions and priced accordingly.
Oops — missed that! (20 char)
It varies a lot by state. Most states have sales tax, but some of those that have it exempt some types of goods (usually things like food and non-luxury clothing items).
I think it’s more complex than exchange rates.
I would imagine pricing is based on the buying capability of their target customers.
This variable pricing wouldn’t go over well in the US where people in, say, NY make higher wages than people in MS doing the same work. But for different countries, it seems to work.
There are also export and import taxes. These may be different for, say, China —> Germany than China —> US. Since Apple is an American company, there may be other taxes, duties, etc. even if the goods don’t physically pass through the US.
Pricing might include exchange rate speculation too, but as others previously pointed out, there doesn’t seem to be a correlation.
Not an expert on any of the above, perhaps someone with expertise will chime in.
Big price increase in the UK and some of the headline features unavailable here. Right now with many families facing rising prices it’ll be interesting to see how many want a higher monthly phone tariff to get the latest and greatest.
Did they say when will iOS 16 going to be released? I think iPhones have become too expensive especially during these times. I will hold on to my phone for a few years more.
Yes, on Monday (September 12th).
Regarding the price increase: with the US being the exception, the prices apparently have gone up through most parts of the world. I am not criticizing Apple for the increase because it is a result of the overall situation given the currency fluctuation and inflation, but it definitely has an impact. If only Apple lowered their prices when the currencies went into the different direction… Apparently it does only work into one direction. Oh well… 
I am happy for the U.S. Apple customers! At least they will be able to get the shiny new stuff for the old price.
I train a lot on the cycle. Maybe my info is outdated, feel free to correct me. Neither the powermeter or the cadence sensor work with the Apple Watch. Most use the ANT+ protocol and can be used with Garmin, Polar, etc. There is a lot of interchangeability between brands, just not anything working with the Apple Watch. For serious training, I am getting way more out of a Garmin.
I was hoping on updates on this one. Sadly, no.
Correct. The price on the sticker is what you pay at the cashier.
There is a concept in economics called Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). Prices can’t get too out of whack because you could make a profit by just buying the product in one country and selling it in another. I haven’t done the math, but here is the data from the OECD:
There’s a book on the history of Commodore (“On the Edge: The Spectacular Rise And Fall of Commodore”). Don’t quote me on the numbers, but the C64 had a price in the US, something like $299. When entering the European market, Jack Tramiel set the price at $499. Or something like that. In any case, a huge difference. His rationale: “Europeans pay more”. 
Often price differences can’t just be explained by exchange rates, VAT and. Sometimes it’s just “willingness to pay” in different markets. Not claiming it’s the case right now. But in the past, there was sometimes a huge price gap between many products. I was in the US 3 months ago and while most stuff costs “the same”, there were huge differences (cheaper or more expensive). The one I noticed: bottled water. I thought the lady at the counter was wrong. Why does it cost so much more? Price Rankings by Country of Water (1.5 liter bottle) (Markets) Can’t explain that with exchange rates, taxes, special technology or whatever. And production costs (a bottle of PET, water) are way below selling prices.
The difference right now seems to be “OK”. But with the first iPhone, everybody who went to the US or knew somebody travelling to the US, tried to get a US-iPhone. Because the difference was HUGE. Way more than any change in exchange rates since then.
It seems, we in Europe are paying more for iPhones, less for water. And other goods.
Ah, yes — if you’re looking for those kinds of features because you’re a more serious athlete, then a Garmin is no doubt a better choice.
I’m a much more casual athlete. I run for fun and fitness, and on rare occasions will do the odd 5K. I also do Apple Fitness+ workouts from time to time. For my fitness and training needs, the Apple Watch is more than sufficient, and has the added benefit of looking good for non-athletic uses.
But I’d agree that serious athletes need more features.
And I’m sure someone had a nice side business buying the computers for $299 in the US and selling them for $449 or $399 in Europe.
The word you’re looking for is smugglers
I run to work twice a week (backpack with clothes) to work, starting at 5:30 AM. 8,9K.
I really like Apple Health/Apple Fitness. But there are so many pain points…
Right now I am using the Apple Watch, but for cycling I use a handlebar mounted computer. I have my iPhone with me (for music).
I consider the Apple Watch a fantastic device, don’t get me wrong. But it could be so much better (“Ultra”) if they made it work with the most common sport hardware out there.
If you are interested in sports watches/hardware, follow DC Rainmaker, the top reviewer out there: Apple Watch Ultra Hands-On: Everything you need to know! | DC Rainmaker
I had a 110V/220V converter for hardware bought in the US. 
In the film days the reverse was true. Dealers purchased cameras in Europe where they were less expensive and sold them here. It was call gray market and I purchased all my Nikons and lenses that way.
We still have “the film days”. My Nikons still gets fed film regularly.
I don’t recall the exchange rates with some countries in the 90ies and before that. There was the book “Europe on $5 a day” (adjusted for inflation ~$42). Somewhere I read now the book should be called “Europe on over $5 an hour”.
I used to order stuff (batteries, CF-Cards, Microdrive…) directly from Japan in the early digital days. Even with shipping, VAT and customs added, I saved a lot of money. It’s not possible to explain the huge price differences with those. A Microdrive was just priced double the price in Europe as in Japan. And if you remember those early days…the cheapest Microdrives: buy an MP3 player, screw it open, extract the Microdrive, throw the player away (Hitachi Muvo2, 4Gb Microdrive). Just to give a hint what bulk prices for Microdrives were. So, buying from a Japanese seller with a markup, paying shipping (which is way cheaper for retailers), paying VAT, paying customs: cheaper.
Conclusion: they charged way more…because they could.
What do you think of the possibility that Apple may charge (at least somewhat) more due to consumer protection legislation?
For example, the EU’s 2-year repair/replace requirement. Probably not a huge factor, but I’m pretty sure the cost of that is non-zero. And I’m wondering if there are any other similar factors that would make it more expensive for Apple to sell into that market.
And clarifying, that also doesn’t mean they might not be charging more “because they can”. But I think there may be other legitimate factors, in addition to the arbitrary ones.