Apple has launched its “Back to School” promotion for 2015, and this year’s is… kinda “meh” to be honest.
Instead of the gift cards Apple offered in 2014 and 2013, this year students who buy a new Mac will be eligible to receive a pair of Beats Solo2 On-Ear Headphones or Beats Solo2 Wireless On-Ear Headphones for their trouble.
In both cases Apple will give students an instant credit of $199.95 — although people opting for the wireless headphones (available in space gray, silver, or gold) will have to cough up an extra $100 to make up the difference in price.
Right now the promotion is offered at eligible Apple Stores in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, although more markets may be added later on. To take advantage of the offer, you’ll need to pick up a new iMac, MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air or and Mac Pro. Mac mini and refurbished Macs are not part of the deal, which runs through September 18.
Source: Apple
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
59 responses to “Apple’s ‘Back to School’ promo will give Mac buyers free Beats headphones”
Yeah. No thanks.
I have no interest in a set of overpriced, underperforming, second rate headphones that need extra chunks of metal thrown in to give them weight to fool people into thinking they are more substantive than they are. I wouldn’t buy these things if they were on sale at 75% off as they are still a rip off at that price so now I’m supposed to accept second rate junk as a “bonus” for buying Apple gear for my kids for school?
Again, no thanks.
Thanks for nothing again this year Apple.
That’s absurd these are for kids… Kids LOVE Beats. Way better than $100 to the Mac App Store to buy a lot of nothing. Not to mention this isn’t for you it’s for back to school. Every kid is loving this.
I would rather a $100 gift card, sell it on ebay for $90 and buy a much nicer set of Grados. Kids going to college are smart enough to know a decent set of headphones.
I would rather a $200 pair of headphones and love them but if we’re going by your absurd logic you can sell Beats for $150 on eBay…
Try again – Target was dumping brand new Beats 2 Drenched on ebay for $99. That shows how overpriced they are.
Not only that but Beats are social currency. No kid wants to walk around with Grados.
Sure, if you have more vanity than sense. Unfortunately that describes too many pampered rich college kids nowadays.
this is called “BACK TO SCHOOL” not audio quality for adults….
AND just because Target is charging $99 which btw is the same value of the gift card (and nobody in their right mind would pay $90 for $100 app store gift card) doesn’t mean you couldn’t sell them on eBay or get wireless ones for $100 more. It’s a sweet deal that makes me more likely to buy a Mac. I’m sure there’s a car phone or telegraph you may want to purchase :)
Wow you’re an asshat. Parents should be teaching their kids about buying quality products, not giving into dumb cultural fads. Beats are absolute crap and no self-respecting parent should let their kids get them, or get them for themselves.
It doesn’t matter if you like them or not. They’re worth more than $100 app card… College kids who this is for love this stuff. Great promotion
It absolutely does. I can absolutely criticize Apple’s decision to follow dumb fads. You stupid college kids are the retarded sheep that we don’t need making any important decisions in this country.
important decisions? Apple is offering a deal that kids appreciate. This isn’t for you.
Go back to class; the adults are talking.
Aside from everything else they actually sound very good.
The facts don’t agree with you.
maybe not for the classical music and opera you probably listen to.
Stupid generalizations from a retard. How many more comments are you going to give us as proof of how much of an idiot you are?
Ummm… just to let you in on a little secret… my 14 yr old son will wait until the local 7-11 has a 25% off sale on their “card rack” which includes Apple cards and he buys as many as he can get. After he does this he lists them online for sale at 90% face value and usually sells them out in a day. Last time he did this with a little over $500 worth and made a little more than $100 for his efforts so, yes, you can sell the cards at 90% face value quite easily.
Props to your son but you can make more from the beats
Nope, wrong again.
Thank you for talking sensibly.
I think you’re getting too old Luke, do you know how popular Beats are with college kids like me??!!! This deal is incredible! Way better than $100 to the Mac App Store….
This explains it. Following dumb cultural fads is the definition of being a sheep. Good to know your false opinion can be soundly ignored by all.
Do the math $200 headphones, vs. $100 gift card to an app store which should all be free anyway..
Oh wow, you’re one of those children! No, the app store shouldn’t “all be free anyway”. Go back to playing Candyland; the adults are talking here.
This is way better than the gift card and almost as good as when Apple gave the iPod Touch with purchase of a Mac for B2S.
Nope.
David… Look at this dude in a bizarre, testosterone driven rage about someone liking headphones. WTF man?! What the hell is wrong with this guy? LMAO!
Dude is being crazy. I’m not in the business of trashing people online. I’ve also never heard more repetitive and disgusting use of the word retard…
Once I took a step back to see the level of anger about just a pair of headphones I knew there was no point trying to make a point.
While the headphones are way overpriced (re-sellers can by a pair of $199 Beats for about $35 and thats even on top of whatever the manufacturer in China is making in profit) for some reason people seem to love these things and you can’t blame Apple for promoting a product of a company they purchased. I thought the gift cards were super “meh” when I worked at Apple because honestly there isn’t much a college student needs and I stress the word “needs”, in the App store and it will probably be spent on $30-$50 games which can be bought cheaper used at Gamestop. Face it, you’re never going to get an iPod again, and it’s cool they are giving out a physical product again instead of a gift card.
You forget an iTunes gift card can also be used for an Apple Music subscription, and on the iBook store.
My daughter who is in college uses her money on apps and books she needs because she values money, and has reasonably priced earphones. She couldn’t care less about Beats.
My 12 year old on the other hand is the one that WANTS a set of Beats. She does not know the value of money.
I suppose if you’re a rich college kid with money to burn and know little about audio quality you would want a set of Beats.
All 4 of my kids know enough to not bother with these headphones irrespective of their gullible peers. My 20yr old son has Asperger’s and electronics are his “thing” (Asperger’s kids tend to be very focused) but prefers Shure headphones (toooo pricey but awesome sound) while my 18 yr old daughter and 14 yr old son have no name models from monoprice, wireless with amazing sound, and my 12 yr old son prefers to use my ancient Sennheisers. So, not all kids love these and not all want them. I spent a half a day going store to store with them more than once on a “new headphone hunt”.
Except you can also use the gift cards on subscriptions like Apple Music and iTunes Match, which is what most of mine go toward. Giving out headphones with computers makes no sense. I’d honestly be fine if these were free with a new iPod because that actually makes sense, especially since Apple just updated them.
All these old fogies on here are using outdated (by 2-3 years) arguments against Beats. Their Solo2 and Pros have great sound.
Some of us old fogies are using the argument that matters. We listened to them and realized they’re second rate sounding headphones at a premium price tag. No thanks.
What headphones do you prefer?
Music industry standard Sony MDR-7506. $100 and MUCH better sound than those overpriced Beats. I’d even go with the Sennheiser HD280s or a good set of in-ear headphones (like my Westone UM Pro 10s, $149) over crappy Beats. Cause I’m not a sheep who cares what other people think of my headphones or that I’m wearing what everyone else supposedly is. Actual sound quality is the most important feature of headphones and that’s where Beats absolutely fail.
I own the Sennheissers, and they sound totally flat with no liveliness to them. I’ve tried the Beyerdynamics, V-Modas, and more… All not very good IMO. They can’t hold a candle to the quality of the sound separation the Beats Pros have. There are many subtleties to recordings, and I like to hear all of the tracks for what the artists and audio engineers intended. I’m 39, btw.
And that’s the point. Headphones aren’t supposed to add anything to the recording! Though I agree that the HD280s are flatter compared to the 7506s (or V6s, which I own). The Beats aren’t “separating” anything; they are literally EQing in more than is actually present in the recording (mostly in the lower and middle frequencies, which is why they are crap). So you’re actually not hearing what the engineer intended. The 7506/V6s have been industry standards for the last 30 years for a reason: they don’t add anything to what you are listening to. They have the flattest frequency response of any headphones on the market.
If you want actual separation, you’re not going to get it in ANY headphones. You need separate drivers to achieve separation, meaning either a nice set of multi-driver, in-ear monitors or a good speaker system. That’s why those concerts with the wall of speaker amps aren’t actually using actual amps (seriously, none of those are real); because that would actually be awful. They have giant PAs with multiple drivers for low, middle, and high frequencies. For home, it would be getting a decent home theater system where the speakers have individual drivers for middle and high frequencies, and a dedicated sub.
Your last paragraph makes sense. I’d appreciate a good home system for that reason. Regardless, whatever Beats does on the Pros is different than what they do on the Solo2s, and each tracks can be heard clearly. They simply sound better. And what you write is the rationalization of which I speak to buy cheaper and try to feel good about having headphones that really aren’t that good.
Nope, they sound different, not better. You are being fooled. I have stated facts, and you’ve simply chosen to ignore them. That makes you the very definition of ignorant, and a sheep who is fooled by marketing. I actually work in this industry, where Beats is the laughingstock and everyone knows them to be garbage.
You’ve chest pounded and shown yourself to be a sheep of opinions of whoever you surround yourself in the music industry… Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. I tried all what you recommended out and went against my own sheep reaction to blowhards like you (and I actually believed you blowhards that Beats sucked) and I bought Beats. Individual opinion. Tested against blowhards chest pounding rationalizations. Individual choice based on my own tears, observations, and conclusions. So just eat ithe fact that you’re the sheep.
That’s the most retarded rationalization of your OPINION that I’ve seen, and I’ve talked to a lot of morons on the Internet. It’s sad that you’re so blind to your own ignorance that you ignore the opinions of those whose opinions are actually supported by facts, music industry engineers. Go to any audiophile forum and say that Beats are better than the Sennheisers or Sonys (or even just good) and you’ll be laughed off the Internet, as well.
But if you wanna continue in your own ignorance and make an ass of yourself, be my guest. Go join the rest of the sheep. We’ll be over here in the real world where facts actually have meaning.
I read all those self-proclaimed audiophiles opinions, watched their YouTube reviews and sought out all the headphones you spoke of. I bought them, listened for a couple of weeks, and returned them because they suck. But EQing is essentially working with different tracks. So you’re talking out your ass on that point… Other points you made well.
I came to my own conclusions in the face of whatever facts you say you reference… Your facts don’t matter to one’s individual experience. Music and art is about individual experience. That’s why artists have the fame and the lion’s share of engineers, armed with their facts, sit at the board out of sight doing what artists ask of them. But at the end of the day I came up with my own opinion that works for me. And you call me a sheep. Who’s the idiot?
Still you. Thank you for providing further proof of it!
Mmhmm, right. Keep telling people what art they should like and how they should enjoy it cockknocker. Maybe with all your facts you can build your own pair of headphones and they’ll be a huge success… But alas no, you’re just here talking a bunch of shit to people on a Cult of Mac thread like a total poser.
Wow, that devolved pretty quickly. You guys really think it’s worthwhile to belittle each other because one of you LIKES Beats and the other prefers an audiophile approach.
Seriously?
Dan, I think the reason you like the Beats is because they flavour the music in a way you enjoy. I myself prefer my music a little cleaner and to sound like the artist recorded it. PMB seems to feel as I do that the music shouldn’t be changed by the headphones as a default.
It’s that simple….and Dan, while you have your own opinion it does not in any way mean that the methods some of us have used for decades and more are wrong and you are right. Your experiences do not define the boundaries of what is and is not the correct sound from headphones.
You really need to chill out with the notion that your anecdotal experiences should mean anything when they are, in fact, in conflict with a much greater majority of audiophiles agree. Your experiences are your own as are mine but PMB is stating facts that are consistent with the last 80 odd years of audio production while your input has been to claim a known inferior, in the eyes of those considered experts in this specific field mind you, product is actually superior due to your anecdotal input.
It doesn’t work that way. Sorry.
I’ve said as much in most of my posts… I do think that many people backwards rationalize buying cheaper headphones by justifying they sound better. Other than that my main point is personal choice rules. I’m just not going to believe V-Moda is some amazingly secret brand that gets audio better than anybody for $99. Bunch of baloney. Without a preamp or great home set up why not experiment with the EQ like Beats does?
Oh good, I was wondering when you were going to admit defeat. That comment did just that. Slink away, ignorant buffoon.
I use an amalgam speaker system with a pair of Bose 601 series 3 (REAL 1985s baby!) speakers which are augmented by a Bose Acoustimass 12 surround and sub array. These are driven by a Harmon/Kardon amp and pre-amp and I still have my Pioneer PNR-0001 turntable with an Ortofon OM-10 diamond for vinyl.
My “monitors” are a set of JBLs and I still use a Teac R2R as well. :)
Nice! I haven’t had the money to pour in as much to a system as I would like. I’ve got a pair of Dayton Audio 4″ 3-way speakers and a Polk 10″ sub running through my Kenwood VR-615 receiver. Sounds awesome in my small room! I also have a set of Sony V6s that are like 20 years old and still in great shape, along with my Westone Um Pro 10s for when I want to drown out the world. I also have a knockoff pair of Sony 7509HDs that sound great, but the strap kinda fell apart :/
I have to point out that headphones aren’t supposed to change the sound of the source material but are supposed to reproduce that sound as cleanly and purely as possible. If they headphones change the sound by making it brighter or by adding or removing sound levels then they are not doing what they are supposed to do.
A studio engineer is NOT looking to “flavour” the sound through his headphones as he needs it to be as purely reproduced as possible do ensure the correct mix of levels across the auditory spectrum. For this reason alone headphones are supposed to be as clean from distortion and sound manipulation as possible.
Beats do not come close to doing this and as such are considered to be extremely poor by most people who know about sound.
It’s all your opinion. I tried the Beyerdynamics, don’t mess with the sound thing at all, and they were weak. Maybe buying a preamp and plugging it into the sound source would result in a great sound, but then that’s another couple hundred at least, and you’re in Beats price territory… And you have to carry around another device as well. It’s a really conservative argument to say flavoring the sound is “not supposed to happen.” Well, why not if they can do it successfully. I like it better than the options I’ve listened to, and at the end of the day that’s all that matters. You can Geek out all you want, but on a consumer level listening pleasure trumps metrics, engineer “shoulds”/”shouldn’ts”, or any such bullshit. Personal choice my friend.
Your personal choice is subjective, our facts are objective. Headphones aren’t supposed to flavor the sound, plain and simple. That design purpose isn’t going to change, no matter how much you ignore it or want it to change. You can like the sound of Beats all you want, but it doesn’t mean they sound better or prevent those who know better from laughing their ass off at you. Enjoy listening to your crappy MP3s on your crappy, over-priced garbage cans.
Oh wow, you’re so powerful
I’ve been using the same set of sennheiser studio pros for almost 10 years now. They were a little over $400 when I bought them so no, the $129.99 thing has nothing to do with me.
I buy headphones that sound good. That is what I listen for. The price is only relevant if, as in the case with Beats,the value of the headphones does not equal the quality of the sound. Over priced and lower quality will not get me to open my wallet.
I’m heading to NYC in late August and intended to get a new MacBook while there. The promotion will still be on while there, does anyone know if I turn up with my son & his college ID if we’d get the promo deal or will we be laughed out of the store?