Xara are forcing Brits to subsidise their American customers?

$89 for XX but £69

There hasn't been an exchange rate that justifies that price since.. well, I don't know. Years, decades, I'm not sure. Is there a good reason for this?

At today's rate xx would be £56.

tax?

Yeah, could be, I don't know what they pay over there, but it would need to be zero to justify it.

on UK site prices include VAT and on US site they exclude it

whether local taxes are added on purchasing in US or elsewhere I do not know...

As ever, our ravenous government needs feeding. :( Still, I'm used that; at least there's not another finger in the pie.

For what it's worth, as a Canadian I paid $69 USD (Upgraded from Pro 4 to Pro 5) and was not charged tax, just $8 for shipping.

At the current exchange rate of 1.61 USD, $89 USD is approximately £56 as you mentioned. The lowest rate so far this year was 1.36 USD (January 23), in which case $89 USD was £65.

It's fairly close. I guess it all comes down to how often they synchronize their prices.

Adobe seems to think us Brits are rich, or stupid, or both, charging equivalent of £500 more for CS4 than in the US! And that's because of the Euro they reckon! :mad:

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Originally Posted by neodeist

Adobe seems to think us Brits are rich, or stupid, or both, charging equivalent of £500 more for CS4 than in the US! And that's because of the Euro they reckon! :mad:

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Well, I have seen that with many prices, in dollars it is way cheaper
then ordering in euro's, so somethimes I just order in dollars and they still send me the goods happily. ;o)
And they use all kind of excuses, for if you pay in euro's you always pay too much compared to prices abroad.

A couple of years ago I tried to pay in dollars. Adobe support staff are still laughing! Sent me a long mail eventually lecturing on their 'extra overheads' in the UK.

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Originally Posted by Splodger

There hasn't been an exchange rate that justifies that price

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My advice would be to shop around first before purchasing. It may sound strange, but buying directly from Xara doesn't necessarily mean you're paying the lowest price.

Regards, Albert

What happened to the links in your signature space, Albert? We aren't allowed to see the links to your website anymore?

Probably updating his Pardooz website to feature Xtreme 5 - he'll put the link back once ready I assume ;)

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Originally Posted by Boy

What happened to the links in your signature space, Albert? We aren't allowed to see the links to your website anymore?

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Hello Boy, I deliberately removed my signature because - given the nature of that specific posting - I didn't want to give people the impression that I was luring them to our website. It felt inappropriate to use my sig there, that's way. :)

@ Steve: we are up-to-date already ;)

Which resellers are available to me? Presumably not Albert given that there's a disc that needs sending , too?

You can find a list of resellers here:

http://site.xara.com/ordering/world.asp

Worldwide resellers also ship the Retail Version CD's when available.

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Originally Posted by Splodger

Which resellers are available to me? Presumably not Albert given that there's a disc that needs sending , too?

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Hi Splodger, I'm glad to say your assumption is not correct. We - like other Resellers, I think - can ship all Xara products worldwide.

So, how does one place an order with a reseller? I understand that the CD is being sent after an order is placed and after Xara has made them available to the resellers, but how does a customer get the download? Or is that the trial version that can be unlocked by a serial number that will be supplied by the reseller?

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Originally Posted by Boy

Or is that the trial version that can be unlocked by a serial number that will be supplied by the reseller?

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Yes Boy, that's how it works. :)

Please note the following note on http://www.xara.com/us/products/xtreme/buy/:
"V5 has just been released and so delivery of CDs will take longer than normal. We expect to receive the first stock in July 09."

Thanks for the info Albert.

Would xara ship the cd on behalf of the reseller or would the reseller send it themselves?

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Originally Posted by Splodger

Would xara ship the cd on behalf of the reseller or would the reseller send it themselves?

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We normally ship the software from our local, Canadian stock.

A problem might arise at customs, because despite the key code being the real value of the purchase, the disc has a face value that is above the customs threshold. If for some reason I was asked to pay duty by customs (and worst of all an admin fee to process the payment, levied by the courier) it wouldn't make buying from abroad any cheaper.

All I can say is that we've never had any customs issues yet sending software abroad.

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Originally Posted by akubbeng

Hi Splodger, I'm glad to say your assumption is not correct. We - like other Resellers, I think - can ship all Xara products worldwide.

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Hi Albert,

I am in Vancouver and had a look at upgrade pricing on the Pardooz site.
It seems that I can get XXP 5 upgrade from XXP4+Web Designer for $25.40?
Is that an electronic download?

Also, why is the Pardooz price $25.40 Cdn but on the Xara.com web site, the price for the same upgrade is $59.51 Cdn .

Xara's price seems to be more than 2x the Pardooz price! :confused:

Am I missing something, or is Albert and Pardooz just offering a very good price to us Canadians? :-)

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Originally Posted by sledger

You can find a list of resellers here:

http://site.xara.com/ordering/world.asp

Worldwide resellers also ship the Retail Version CD's when available.

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Thanks sledger.

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Originally Posted by Improv

Am I missing something, or is Albert and Pardooz just offering a very good price to us Canadians? :-)

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Hi Improv,

please note that the CDN 25.40 (all-in) you mentioned applies when you purchase the upgrade from Xtreme 4 and Web Designer to Xtreme 5 (xara.com: CDN 26.48 ex + $ 8 US (or CDN 8.80) for shipping).

And we charge CDN 59 (again all-in) for the upgrade from Xtreme PRO 4 and Web Designer to Xtreme PRO 5 (xara.com: CDN 59.59 ex + $ 8 US (or CDN 8.80) for shipping).

Prices above are for the CD-version, not the electronic download and are available to all, not just Canadians :).

Damn, I wish I'd have known that sooner......

Albert - Does buying directly from Xara have any advantages, that you can't offer? Maybe I'll do my business with you in the future.

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Originally Posted by akubbeng

Hi Improv,

please note that the CDN 25.40 (all-in) you mentioned applies when you purchase the upgrade from Xtreme 4 and Web Designer to Xtreme 5 (xara.com: CDN 26.48 ex + $ 8 US (or CDN 8.80) for shipping).

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Yes, as I mentioned in my previous post, I was looking for the upgrade from XXP4 and Web Designer because that is what I now have! ;)

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And we charge CDN 59 (again all-in) for the upgrade from Xtreme PRO 4 and Web Designer to Xtreme PRO 5 (xara.com: CDN 59.59 ex + $ 8 US (or CDN 8.80) for shipping).

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Ok, if you go to this page:

http://www.pardooz.com/upgradesxt.html

It seems that I was originally looking at the Xtreme 4 and Web Designer upgrade, not the Xtreme Pro4 and Web Designer upgrade which is listed at $50 Cdn, plus shipping.

So I guess I either order from Xara and get the download immediately and wait longer for the CD to ship or I order from Pardooz and wait a few days for shipping with no download to play with immediately.

No real advantage when the prices are pretty much the same.

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Prices above are for the CD-version .

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Do you have the CDs now for immediate shipping?

Cheers

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Originally Posted by Improv

Do you have the CDs now for immediate shipping?

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CD's will be available from Xara and Authorized resellers sometime in July.
In the past resellers receive their retail CD stock shortly after Xara Ltd actually have them.

The advantage of using a local reseller is that you are supporting a local business, prices may be more competitive and you will receive your retail version CD sooner than waiting for overseas mail to arrive (once the reseller has their stock of course).

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Originally Posted by sledger

CD's will be available from Xara and Authorized resellers sometime in July.
In the past resellers receive their retail CD stock shortly after Xara Ltd actually have them.

The advantage of using a local reseller is that you are supporting a local business, prices may be more competitive and you will receive your retail version CD sooner than waiting for overseas mail to arrive (once the reseller has their stock of course).

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Thanks, that settles it then for me. Prices seem to be virtually the same. But if I order from Xara directly there is no waiting for several weeks with the download.

When you buy your license from a reseller such as Albert, you can unlock the same trial download from Xara as you would if you purchased your license from Xara directly. There is no *waiting for downloads* (Albert has a link to the trial download on his home page)
Difference is, you will be supporting a local reseller and, when available, the Retail CD will be supplied by them. They will also help you with after sales support if necessary.

So, it comes down to whether or not supporting a local reseller is important to you.
Once all resellers have their stock of Retails CD's, it's likely that you will receive the CD much sooner than from Xara (unless Xara are the closer to you than Albert for example :))

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Originally Posted by ss-kalm

Does buying directly from Xara have any advantages, that you can't offer?

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Not that I can think of.

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Originally Posted by Improv

... prices are pretty much the same.

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In both cases there's a price difference of approx. $ 10 CDN.

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Originally Posted by sledger

When you buy your license from a reseller such as Albert, you can unlock the same trial download from Xara as you would if you purchased your license from Xara directly. There is no *waiting for downloads* (Albert has a link to the trial download on his home page)
Difference is, you will be supporting a local reseller and, when available, the Retail CD will be supplied by them. They will also help you with after sales support if necessary.

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In an earlier post from Albert, I got the impression that they had CDs only, no downloadable purchases as Xara has. And Sparwood BC Canada is 300-400 miles (or whatever) away from Vancouver. Hardly a local purchase.
As for reseller support, I have never needed it unless software products are defective.

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So, it comes down to whether or not supporting a local reseller is important to you.

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It works both ways though-why should I purchase from a business just because they chose to locate in the same part of the world when there is no advantage for me? No reason at all actually. Businesses should be supported because of their merits, not as a patriotic duty. It's a business, not an individual friend, family member or acquaintance.

I'll buy from Xara, thanks.

Bye.

Not a problem, Improv; enjoy the software! :)

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Originally Posted by Improv

.....why should I purchase from a business just because they chose to locate in the same part of the world when there is no advantage for me....

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I think there is definitely an advantage - Consider the following:

You get the same download, and the same unlock code, so there is no difference there.

The resellers will probably (although I have no basis in fact for this supposition) get their stock of CD's before Xara sends them to the end users, and Albert will probably ship from his stock to you, quicker than Xara will, as his list is nowhere near as long.

On a $25.40 CDN purchase (including everything - shipping and taxes) from Albert for the Xara Xtreme 5 upgrade from XX4 and XWD. From Xara you will pay (the same as I paid) $24.00 US plus $8.00 US shipping - $32.00 US (Approx $35.34 CDN at todays prices). Not a great saving in actual dollars ($9.94), but substantial as a percentage. Close to the same applies for XXP5 - $59 CDN from Albert or $54.00 US plus $8.00 US shipping and handling - $62.00 US ($68.48 CDN) - a saving of $9.48.

I don't see where you see a disadvantage here.

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Originally Posted by ss-kalm

I think there is definitely an advantage ...

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Good for you, and that's YOUR opinion, nothing more. So go buy from him already if you feel that strongly.

Whatever, I really couldn't care now-I bought from Xara.

Actually it's a fact (if only the less cost bit), not an opinion. However now you've bought from Xara (as I did), please enjoy XX5. I wasn't trying to be offensive, just trying to point out advantages.

It was you who pointed out earlier .... "Am I missing something, or is Albert and Pardooz just offering a very good price to us Canadians?". Why are you upset with me for agreeing with you?

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Originally Posted by ss-kalm

Actually it's a fact (if only the less cost bit), not an opinion. However now you've bought from Xara (as I did), please enjoy XX5. I wasn't trying to be offensive, just trying to point out advantages.

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What you perceive as advantages-trivialities to me.

So be it!