I too was thinking about moving to Mac, although now my intention is staggered. What I see in my country is iPhone - $1000, MacBook - over $3000. And average salary here is twice less than that in Russia.

The only thing I was up to is iPod Shuffle - $90. This little trickle is affordable.

Go on, Steve :)

As a person living in Russia I agree with most stuff in the article. I was thinking about purchasing Mac Pro, but when compared US price of about 2700$ against prices suggested by Moscow Apple dealers (over 4000$ for the same model) I refused the idea. It is just stupid to pay 50% over US price.

As for Ipod touch, I don't understand what problems with firmware update are mentioned. I've recently updated the firmware using ITunes software without any problems.

I'd like to move to Mac but now I will think it out once again.
The Apple showed that it's nor interested in customers in Russia and I think this fact is unknown in Apple HQ.

I see the price policy as a good thing, at least this way general Russian public will be relatively free of CrappleMacs, which are all just an overpriced, under functional, hyped up equivalents of the same mp3/4 player, Unix Desktop, MythTV box.

I know many russians — they good and rich mans, but not SO rich... wtf?

"Jobs' Mob"? Who writes this stuff? maybe underneath all the anti Apple bias there is a story here but I can't be arsed - life is too short

The bad price apple policy in Russia just makes me regularly enjoy the products made under IRIVER trade mark.

a more truthful statement hath never been stated...though i'm not laughing. oh the joys of spending obscene amounts of dosh on pseudo-proprietary digusess...

Apple does it in Asia, too, the arrogant b*stards. The difference is, the media here is as pliant as that in the West.

Wow, it's barely past noon on Monday here on the good ole' East Coast of the USA, and Nick already has the first "Apple blows" article for the week up and posted! Awesome job!

Of course he forgot the part where Jobso went into the Moscow ghetto and slept with a 16 year-old prostitute (he gave her a coupon for an iPod for 25% off); he then publically urinated in Kremlin Square after getting sauced on the best Russian Vodka, and then he and his employees goose-stepped through the streets shouting "Heil!" and throwing broken iPhones at small children, who then went running crying to their moms.

So other than a few factual ommissions and not putting your negative bias on the story, nice article.

the obligatory joke:

In Soviet Russia, iPod doesn't buy You.