B&H Photo Kicks Off Pre-Orders for New Apple Devices, Offering Tax-Free Purchases in Some States

Tuesday October 30, 2018 3:55 PM PDT by Mitchel Broussard
Pre-orders for the 2018 MacBook Air and iPad Pro have kicked off on Apple.com, and because the devices are brand new, we won't see discounted prices on them for a while. Still, third-party retailers like B&H Photo offer the chance to save a bit of money at the onset of your new Apple purchase, depending on the state you live in.

According to B&H Photo's guidelines, the retailer currently collects sales taxes in Alabama, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New York, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Vermont, Washington (state), and Wisconsin. For all non-listed states, residents won't have to pay sales taxes on orders placed within those states, although B&H Photo informed me that more states will be added to the tax collection list soon.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with B&H Photo. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

B&H Photo is selling 24 models of the new MacBook Air, including quite a few custom configurations. According to a company representative, customers can expect launch day shipping for all base models of the new products, but it's not a guarantee. Some devices indicate a shipping date of November 8 and later, following Apple's launch on November 7.

Note: B&H Photo appears to be dealing with a traffic volume issue, so some links may appear temporarily broken, but they all should work after a few refreshes.

For MacBook Air, the full list can be found on B&H Photo, and we've provided a few below:
The retailer also has numerous configurations of the Mac mini up for pre-order already:
Lastly, you'll find Apple's new iPad Pro on B&H Photo as well:
Lastly, B&H Photo has the second generation Apple Pencil up for pre-order at $129.00, also matching Apple's price. On Apple.com, you can also order a few accessories for the new MacBook Air and iPad Pro, including the Leather Sleeve, Smart Keyboard Folio, and Smart Folio.

Related Roundup: Apple Deals
26 comments


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yanksfan114
3 weeks ago
**DISCLAIMER**

Just because your state is not listed and B&H doesn’t collect sales tax does not mean you do not owe it. It gets reported on your state return at the end of the year. I have had many clients getting letters lately from states that require retailers give them out of state customer purchases. Purchase wisely.

Source: CPA who hates state taxation
Rating: 4 Votes
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rotlex
3 weeks ago
Love B&H and pretty much buy everything I can from them!
Rating: 3 Votes
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GizmoDVD
3 weeks ago
I'm sure it'll ship in 2 months like the Apple Watches.

Hard pass on B&H
Rating: 2 Votes
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ryanmcv
3 weeks ago

The only states they can legally offer "tax free" in are the five that don't have sales tax. Failure to collect it in all other 45 states is a violation of new federal tax law.

If they aren't charging sales tax for online sales in anything other than those below, they're about to get hit hard.

* Alaska
* Delaware
* Montana
* New Hampshire
* Oregon

This is patently false. I assume you're referring to the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision (South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.) that allows states to collect sales tax on goods purchased online, regardless of where the merchant is physically located.

However, it is still up to the states and their legislatures to actually pass and implement a revised tax law. The Supreme Court decision did not magically change the tax code in all 50 states. All it did was remove any restrictions that may have prohibited states from collecting tax on Internet purchases.

I don't know all of the details, but I highly doubt that every state has passed a new tax law already. It's only been a few months since the Supreme Court decision.
Rating: 2 Votes
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snebes
3 weeks ago
Illinois too? Damn.

I just visited their NY store. Cool place but sales tax will stop me from using them now.
Rating: 1 Votes
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oaklands
3 weeks ago
Hey [USER=520561]@Mitchel[/USER] Broussard, just an FYI that the way you worded the title currently suggests that purchases are free from tax – which they are not. Tax is simply not collected in certain states from B&H - not 'Tax Free' as you title states (normally reserved for non-profits and civic entities). Just a heads up that this can be considered False Advertising and have legal repercussions – especially if you are an affiliate of the website you mention. I suggest you edit the title and post a correction update... of course I would confer with your legal department first to confirm.
Rating: 1 Votes
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macduke
3 weeks ago
I’d rather pay the tax at this point than go through customer service phone hell for weeks when B&H loses your package and then tells you there is nothing they can do when you just bought a $3200 camera. In this day and age of tracking everything by the second I have no idea how they are so far behind. Probably because they go on holiday and shut down their online store every other week. Really. I’m still salty about my Sony a7R III order last year.
Rating: 1 Votes
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redscull
2 weeks ago

Buy it on amazon

Amazon is great for many things, but I never buy tech off Amazon. Too high a chance that you will get a crappy counterfeit item that genuinely looks 100% authentic, logos and all, until it breaks.
Rating: 1 Votes
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PBG4 Dude
2 weeks ago
These posts of “tax free” purchases can be very misleading. Some states have gone after online vendors for lists of sales to their states, then sending letters to end purchasers charging them tax and threatening penalties if not paid in certain time frames.

One example off the top of my head, NewEgg sent a list of all purchases >$1,500 to one state which then sent out sales tax collection notices to those purchasers.

As someone who wants a smooth road to drive on and my refuse/recycling picked up weekly, I understand taxes are a necessary evil. These MR posts on how to avoid paying your fair share in taxes are mildly infuriating to me.
Rating: 1 Votes
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sanook997
3 weeks ago

Love B&H and pretty much buy everything I can from them!


B&H has been my go to for anything electronic for years, its a great company with great service. Tax or not, I'll purchase from them.
Rating: 1 Votes
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