The iPad 3G is for sale in Manila, but WTF?

While we were out in Manila last night at Megamall we wandered into the electronics area to find some speakers for my laptop.  Some of the ‘specially priced’ movies we’ve been picking up have low volume so we needed something to give it a bit of a boost.  While we were there we saw this in the window:

The iPad3G is a pretty neat item.  I personally have no desire to get one.  I still think of it as nothing more than a giant iPod Touch.  Plus, it doesn’t really match up with life in the Philippines.  Walking around with something like that in your hand would make you an impressive… target.  Ya.  People would see that and that incident where the guy got his fingers ripped off while his iPad was being stolen would seem tame by comparison.

Anyway, what prompted me to take the photo was the price tag.  The iPad isn’t being sold here officially, that I know of anyway, so the hand-imported ones are selling for higher than what they should.  The price on that iPad is 59,950 PHP, or approximately 1,290 USD.  Electronics in the Philippines typically carry a higher price tag.  I think they’re highly taxed by the government, but this is just over the top.

The next ‘toy’ that I shell out money for will probably be the iPhone 5 next year, if even that.  I’ve had to rearrange my priorities since coming here and I can think of plenty of other things I could spend that money on.  My trusty iPhone 3G will just have to keep chugging along for a few more years.