Product refreshes usually come about every 3-6 months for each product, but this is not gospel. I've seen a product stay pretty much the same for a year. They're never disclosed beforehand, but sometimes there are rumors. Sometimes the rumors are completely bogus, other times there are some elements of fact, and other times every detail is determined beforehand.
Before yesterday's iPod and iTunes (built in podcasting support) announcements, there actually hadn't been a product announcement for 2-3 months for anything, believe it or not.
The Apple Store does have a
http://store.apple.com/Catalog/US/Im...tection policy, accessible through a link to their terms and conditions found at the bottom of every page of the Store Web site:
Should Apple reduce its price on any shipped product within 10 calendar days of shipment, you may contact Apple Sales Support at 1-800-676-2775 to request a refund or credit of the difference between the price you were charged and the current selling price. To receive the refund or credit you must contact Apple within 14 business days of shipment.
I think it seems like Apple revises their product line more than other companies for the following reasons:
- more people pay attention to Apple's product announcements, because they're often more interesting than other companies' announcements, and they're usually kept confidential as long as possible, generating a sense of surprise
- product announcements are staggered for each product line instead of happening all at the same time. With 5 major CPU lines and 2 major iPod lines, that keeps things busy. This doesn't even include software, with about 7 main products or suites.