Slideshow: Tech price war: Canada vs. U.S.

Pricing in Canada versus our neighbours to the south has been an issue for years, but has come to the forefront recently with a Senate committee assembling here to examine the gap that can be as large as 20 per cent.

Pricing for products- especially technology- can vary among countries for many reasons, but CDN decided to compare prices of just a few popular products between Canada and the U.S.

Tablets

Tablets were a popular purchase in 2011. The 7-in. BlackBerry PlayBook originally sold for $499.99 in both Canada and the U.S. at Best Buy. The store is one of many that has since lowered the price on the tablet. The 16BG black iPad 2 has more of a difference, with the popular tablet selling for C$519.99 in Canada, but only US$499.99 in the U.S.

Sources:
PlayBook- BestBuy.ca, BestBuy.com
iPad 2- BestBuy.ca, BestBuy.com

HP desktops

In Canada, pricing for the HP Z800 Workstation begins at C$2,039. In the U.S., the same models begin at US$1,813. In both countries, the products scale up to about $4,200.

Sources:
HP Canada
Hewlett-Packard

Adobe Photoshop CS5

The full version for Windows of the popular Adobe product sells for C$749.99 at Staples in Canada. In the U.S., Americans will pay US$699.99 for the same software.

Sources:
Staples Canada
Staples

The iPhone

Smartphones are difficult to compare, as prices vary among telecom carriers and the deals they offer. However, prices on the recently-released iPhone 4S are similar from Bell Canada and Verizon in the U.S., both selling for about $649.00 without contracts.

Sources:
Bell Canada
Verizon Wireless

Cisco VoIP phones

VoIP phones showed one of the larger differences between countries. The Cisco Unified IP Phone 7965G sells for C$731.99 in Canada, but only US$516.99 in the U.S.

Sources:
CDW Canada
CDW

Brother printers

The Brother MFC-8480DN Multifunction printer sells for C$394.99 in Canada. At only a small difference, the same printer sells for US$398.99 in the U.S.

Sources:
CDW Canada
CDW

Office 365

This year saw the launch of Office 365, Microsoft's answer to productivity in the cloud. In Canada, a small business with fewer than 50 users will pay C$7 per user, per month. In the U.S., the same business would pay US$6 per user, per month.

Sources:
Microsoft Canada
Microsoft U.S.

Norton security software

With Norton Internet Security 2012 for small businesses, there's only a small difference between the Canada and U.S. For one year covering up to three PCs, Symantec sells the product for C$79.99 here at home and US$69.99 south of the border.

Sources:
Symantec Canada (Norton)
Symantec (Norton)

Windows

For a full version of Microsoft's Windows 7 Professional, Canadians will pay C$329.95. In the U.S., buyers can pick the software up for US$299.99.

Sources:
Staples Canada
Staples

D-Link routers

The D-Link EBR-2310 Ethernet Broadband Router sees only a very small difference between countries. Here at home, the router sells for C$43.99. In the U.S., you can pick one up for just a dollar less at US$42.99.

Sources:

CDW Canada
CDW