I see discounts come and go, generally from smaller third party sellers, but are there any solid (ie long running) discount methods for iPhone 14 and Apple watch ideally from Apple or a JbHifi type org?
Best Reliable Method to Get a Discount on iPhone 14 and Apple Watch?
mctubster on 08/02/2023 - 18:51
Comments
Do these exist for Apple? or more JBHifi?
Have you tried searching on a bargain website? Possibly even one based in Australia (often shortened to "Oz")?
Aww hell, I'll even make it easy for you - https://www.ozbargain.com.au/wiki/discounted_egift_cards. But worth searching for them too because there are limited time deals on the main site.
TCN cards had 15% off in December that could be used in JB or TGG, that's the safest way to get a decent discount
Yep. Well, there is some nuance to be aware of…
There are a number of gift card schemes that would be relevant to your situation:
Apple gift cards.
Gift cards issued by and redeemable at authorised Apple resellers (e.g. JB Hi-Fi gift cards, The Good Guys gift cards).
Gift cards issued by a third party and redeemable at authorised Apple resellers (i.e. Ultimate gift cards, TCN gift cards).
Gift cards issued by a third party and redeemable at sellers who may not be authorised Apple resellers (e.g. Amazon gift cards, eBay gift cards, Catch gift cards). For example, Apple products sold by and shipped from Amazon AU are from an authorised Apple reseller, but an Apple product sold by a third party on Amazon AU may not be from an authorised Apple reseller.
Prepaid gift cards that are not restricted to a specific merchant or merchant category (e.g. Vanilla Visa gift cards, Coles Mastercard gift cards). (To be fair, this could fit into one of the other categories, but I think it is special enough to call it out separately.)
The next point is that there are two main types of gift card deals available:
Upfront discount, cashback or bonus value deals (e.g. pay $90 for a $100 gift card, pay $100 for a $100 gift card and get $10 cashback at a later date, pay $100 for a $100 gift card and be sent a $10 gift card).
Deals where you are offered bonus loyalty reward points (e.g. Flybuys, Everyday Rewards). These loyalty programs also offer the ability to convert their points into airline frequent flyer points (Velocity and Qantas), which adds another layer of complexity…
The next question is whether the discounts (or bonuses) you can get by purchasing gift cards is actually suitable for you. For example:
You will lose any perks you may get for purchasing a phone on a credit card (e.g. price protection, extended warranty, extended returns protection, protection via chargebacks).
You are placing trust of your money (and if relevant, your bonus perks) in a company (or separate companies). For example, there is always a chance the gift card issuer will stop honouring gift cards or limit your ability to redeem it, whether it is after going into voluntary administration or going out of business. For example, just ask any cardholders of Dick Smith or Deliveroo gift cards how they fared when those companies collapsed in Australia… Alternatively, a gift card issuer may remove a participating retailer or change the way you can redeem a gift card. For example, during a 15% off sale last year on Ultimate Thanks gift cards, Blackhawk Network (the gift card issuer) suddenly removed JB Hi-Fi without warning… and then reversed course when OzBargain kicked up a massive stink. Additionally, once a year around Black Friday, TCN remove the option to exchange some of their physical TCN gift cards for JB Hi-Fi gift cards through the TCN website, which means you can only redeem those TCN gift cards in physical JB Hi-Fi stores. Okay, some of these scenarios are unlikely to happen on any given day for a given gift card, but it is something to be mindful of. Personally, I don’t like awake in the middle of the night worrying about Officeworks leaving the Ultimate gift card scheme (as an example).
You also need to be mindful of the quirks in redeeming gift cards. For example:
You can only redeem 8 Apple gift cards in one online transaction, but you can get around this by redeeming Apple gift cards onto your Apple Account Associated Balance first and then redeem that balance. However, you cannot redeem that balance in a physical Apple store, yet you can redeem Apple gift cards at a physical Apple store (although I do not know if there is an actual limit).
You can only redeem 1x Ultimate (Visa) gift card on the JB Hi-Fi website, but you can redeem an unlimited number of JB Hi-Fi gift cards on the JB Hi-Fi website. However, if you go instore, there are no redemption limits for either Ultimate or JB Hi-Fi gift cards.
You cannot redeem Officeworks gift cards or Coles Group & Myer gift cards on the Officeworks website, but there appears to be no redemption limit instore (unless staff decide to randomly come up with their own limit, which has happened in the past).
If you are unsure as to what limitations may apply to your situation, search OzBargain (or Google), as someone may have answered your question already. You can always post a forum thread here if you are still unsure, but be prepared to have some people accusing you of being "lazy" for not doing research…
You have two options in terms of purchasing gift cards:
Discounted gift card portals selling gift cards at a discount or with bonus cashback. These generally have less attractive rates, because the perks are available everyday, and may not be available to everyone. A good starting point is OzBargain's discounted gift card wiki.
Temporary marketing promotions available at selected retailers (e.g. supermarkets, department stores, gift card portals. These usually get posted to OzBargain under the Gift Card tag. Key callouts include 20x bonus Everyday Rewards points on purchase of $50 and $100 Ultimate Him gift cards at Woolworths, $10 Amazon credit on purchase of $100 Ultimate gift cards at Amazon and $10 bonus gift card on purchase of a specially-marked $150 gift card at Prezzee.
I hope this helps!
I better stop writing, considering this whole comment was written on my phone, and my thumbs need a break…
Should sticky this on the gift voucher page.
and save your thumbs while we are at it
@dtc: Oh don't worry, I will copy this text onto a wiki page, but I don’t think the gift card pages are the best place to store it. I'll review the wiki the next time I'm in front of a computer, but that text may go into a brand new page!
Wow great, thank you for all the info!
Wait for a Facebook ad to appear with the deal you are after.
Pounce.
lol, i only buy power tools from facebook ;)
ideally from Apple or a JbHifi type org?
Get 10% to 15% off Ultimate Giftcards/Apple Giftcards from Coles (I don't want to say Woolies because your points can get stolen).
Go to JB (optionally during discount) or Apple store and buy them outright. Or if you feel like being risky but saving more at Apple, wait until last years models show up in the Apple AU Refurbished section and pay for those with Apple Giftcards. I have no idea about the cycle they appear or when. I have just seen stock there by chance when I checked, but it sells out really fast.
Flirt with the salesperson and be hot, like a 9 or 10/10. Also be their preferred sex.
Keeping an eye on a future post of someone being stuck with gift cards they couldn't use for a $1800 phone.
five finger discount
Discounted Gift Cards