Ah, Apple. Love it or hate it, it’s one of the world’s most recognizable brands, worth trillions of dollars.
Whether it’s because of its fascinating history, or that perfectly minimalist and iconic logo, or the logo’s many appearances in movies and TV shows… Or simply due to the fact that Apple makes good tech that is easy to use, powerful and pretty – people love buying Apple products, and many would feel pride for owning them.
And while we could argue that some of Apple’s products are amazing value for the money – such as the new, highly powerful iPhone SE (2022), or the base iPad, to this day many tech enthusiasts would probably describe Apple’s devices as overpriced.
There’s a reason for it. Today we’ll check out some of the products Apple is selling, particularly accessories, that I doubt anyone would argue are indeed grossly overpriced. And we’ll ponder upon whom these accessories might be for, because it’s clearly not the average Joe.
Let’s dive into the wonderful world of overpriced Apple accessories, starting with perhaps the most popular one!
Pro Display Stand – $999
You might be mistaken to think it’s made out of platinum, because of the fact that it costs half the price of lasik surgery, but this is indeed just a metal display stand for Apple’s Pro Display XDR.
Yes, for the price of two Apple display stands you can actually get the gift of vision for yourself or a loved one, who has nearsightedness, but who needs long-range vision when you can have an Apple stand for your XDR display!
Now granted, this is clearly a product Apple is targeting to professionals – probably business casuals who get to the office on a scooter, wearing Converse sneakers paired with a tie, and can afford a first-party display stand to perfectly match their Apple Pro Display.
Nothing wrong with that! Unless you look at this piece of metal from the outside, of course… I just spent $400 on an Apple Watch and it felt like it was too much, I can’t imagine buying this. But again – flourishing businesses that can afford to splurge would probably enjoy having this thousand-dollar display stand.
Four Mac Pro Wheels – $699
You know that large cheese grater-looking Mac Pro computer Apple is selling? Well, if you want the privilege of rolling it around, instead of having to pick it up to move it – that’ll cost you $700.
It’s pretty hard to justify spending $700 on four wheels, but hey… Actually, I’m not sure how many businesses need to roll around their Mac Pro all the time to justify this purchase, but clearly – they exist. Or some day Apple will have to bury thousands of these wheels in a landfill, after they get left over. Who’s to say?
Fun fact, you can buy an entire computer tower stand with four wheels for like $17 on Amazon, but it ain’t Apple… It’s a no-brand instead – disgusting!
Four feet for Mac Pro – $299
So you bought a Mac Pro, which already came with four feet pre-installed – why would you buy these?
Well, actually you can buy the Mac Pro with the aforementioned $700 wheels pre-installed instead, so these feet are an option if you ever change your mind. You know, if you’re not exactly great with your finances.
Or, again, to be fair – if you’re an ever-changing business who can afford all that. No one is judging you! More power to ya! I’m not jealous!
Thunderbolt Cable (3 m) – $159
Well, it’s braided and “coils without tangling”, so that’s nice. You could buy a 3-meter-long Thunderbolt cable for like $15, capable of exactly the same transfer speed, but no one will judge you for wanting the $160 Apple one. It’s reasonably likely to be of higher quality.
Still, $160? I know I ain’t paying that. As someone who’s always lived on cheapo third party cables (HDMI, Thunderbolt) I can confirm they’ve been doing what I want them to do just fine, despite their infinitely smaller price and lack of Apple branding.
Smart Keyboard Folio for iPad Pro 11-inch – $179
That’s a personal one. I’ll say it nicely – as someone who used this keyboard for less than a month until it got all dirty and torn – I really don’t believe it’s worth $180. It has no feet, so you just plop it on any table you want to use it on – its entire surface gets dirty, and indeed – scratches very easily… Way too easily.
No backlight, no trackpad, no infinite adjustment angles… It’s great in concept, lightweight, and I like how the keys feel, plus it’s spill proof – but there are iPad keyboard options out there from brands like Brydge, Logitech and Zagg that I consider way better and feature rich… And those are cheaper too.
Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro 12.9‑inch – $349
To this day this is one crazy cool iPad keyboard, with backlit keys and a great touchpad. However, it’s not exactly comfy in the lap, it doesn’t deliver what you’d consider a “normal” laptop experience – and that’s arguably for the worse.
The company Brydge sells a $100 cheaper keyboard that full-on turns your iPad into a Macbook-looking thing, and if you really don’t care for top quality you can get a no-brand iPad Pro 12.9 keyboard case for as little as $80.
Still, this “Magic” keyboard from Apple does have a unique design and thus is quite visually striking, so for that alone, I can personally understand the price, even if I wouldn’t go for it.
Apple Watch Hermès band – $539
So you just got yourself a $400 Apple Watch that came with a wristband, so why not spend more than what the entire watch cost and get a luxury-brand Hermès band as well?
This is a cheap shot, I know – luxury brands are overpriced, that’s kind of their thing. If you’re into luxury brands – that’s cool. I just feel like my Nike watch band, which I don’t even know how much it costs because it came with my $400 Apple Watch, looks better.
Apple Watch Hermès Stainless Steel case – $1499
If you thought the previous leather band was overpriced, oh how hard you must be laughing now. Compared to $1499, $539 is starting to look pretty good! Still, this does look like something a wealthy businessman might wear. And you do get the watch included, in stainless steel as opposed to aluminum.
There’s a wise old saying that goes: “You gotta pay to play!”
And boy if us flagship tech fans don’t get it.
Let us know in the comments – what’s the most expensive, hard-to-justify tech purchase you’ve ever made?
Maybe it was a flagship phone, a luxury case, or a $2300 LED graphics card for your PC that you can’t even see while using it? (Yes, those exist, the price is accurate.)
