There’s very little price variation between Apple retailers, but if you buy your Mac directly from Apple, you’re not getting the most value for your dollar.  I just bought my mom a new MacBook (her old iBook wasn’t worth repairing), and once again, the best deal was at MacMall.  Now, if you’re not good with filling out and mailing in rebate forms, you’d be better off ordering from JandR.com or Amazon.com, where you’ll generally find the lowest price without rebates.  But if you’re willing to download the forms, cut out the UPC codes, and make multiple copies of everything, MacMall bundles their Macs with lowest-net cost rebates, free printers, carrying cases, software and ground shipping.  They count on customers forgetting to fill out the paperwork in the excitement of unpacking their new computers, but dilligent consumers make out like bandits.