Amazon Prime Day is a great time to cash in on deals and price drops that you normally wouldn’t see throughout most of the year. Right now is especially important to be on the lookout since we’re in a new tech generation and plenty of retailers are trying to unload older models to make way for brand-new ones. Major sales events are perfect, as they can discount a wide range of products and devices to better entice buyers.
With Amazon Prime Day 2023 almost upon us, this is the perfect time to get a hold of one of the best MacBooks. And even better, other retailers will try to undercut Amazon by selling their own wares at a hefty discount. For instance, Best Buy is hosting a rival sale that’s already shaping up to offer the best deals. What’s good about that, especially if you’re not a Best Buy fan, is that we expect Amazon to price match as well, which means you may find even deeper discounts to nab during Prime Day.
There are plenty of early Prime Day deals right now to take advantage of right now and we’ve rounded up some of the best ones out there. So do check them out and invest in the right MacBook for you.
What to look out for in a MacBook deal
Thanks to all the Amazon Prime Day sales available now and through the two official days, you can shave off a nice amount from the MSRP of plenty of MacBooks, which are among the best laptops you can buy today. Though most of them are pretty legitimate, there are still some tips and tricks to know in order to get the best deals possible, as well as to avoid retailers pulling a fast one over you with less-than-stellar deals.
In terms of MacBooks, the cheapest ones are those still equipped with the Intel Core-series of processors, most likely the Core i5 ones. Depending on the other specs, these can either be great ways to get your hands on high-quality laptops on the cheap, or outdated laptops that you’re better off avoiding. Another piece of advice is to avoid any Intel laptops that still use flash storage, only stick with SSD storage.
The newer models (think 2020 and up) are equipped with Apple’s own silicon called the M-series chips. The first ones are the M1 series and the current generation is the M2 series, with the baseline M1 and M2 chips made for the Air series of MacBooks and base Mac minis, while the more powerful MacBook Pro, as well as the upgraded Mac mini, iMacs, and more, are given stronger versions. If you need your MacBook for productivity work, for instance, there’s no need to spend a couple of thousand dollars on the Pro series and other higher-tier Mac devices since the latter is meant for creative and editing work.
Another thing to note is that unless you’re referring to the rare Intel processor-equipped MacBooks, graphics cards are not a factor for MacBooks at all since most of the best PC games are simply not available for Mac devices and the ones that are mainly use the processor instead. The only other specs that matter are RAM and storage, and that depends on what your needs are versus your budget because higher specs tend to add a huge cost to your MacBook.
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Today's best US MacBook deals
M1 Apple MacBook Air - 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.com%2Fdp%2FB08N5LNQCX%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-20" data-link-merchant="Amazon US"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was $999 now $749 at Amazon
If you're looking for an affordable MacBook, Amazon has slashed the price of the 2020 MacBook Air down to $749 — that's the lowest price ever. The powerful 13-inch laptop delivers excellent performance thanks to Apple's M1 Chip and includes an ultra-thin design and an impressive battery life.
M2 Apple MacBook Air - 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.com%2Fdp%2FB0B3C57XLR%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-20" data-link-merchant="Amazon US"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was $1,299 now $1,099 at Amazon
If you're ready to upgrade to the M2 chip for your MacBook Air, this is an excellent deal to take advantage of. The powerful 13-inch laptop delivers excellent performance thanks to Apple's M2 Chip and includes an ultra-thin design and an impressive battery life.
M2 Apple MacBook Air 15-inch - 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.com%2FApple-2023-MacBook-Laptop-chip%2Fdp%2FB0C75NSLJY%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-20" data-link-merchant="Amazon US"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was $1,299 now $1,199 at Amazon
This is the first of the 15-inch line of MacBook Air laptops, sporting the M2 chip as well. If you want the M2 chip laptop with a larger screen, this is a solid deal to take advantage of. The powerful laptop delivers excellent performance thanks to Apple's M2 chip and manages to maintain a thin design and an impressive battery life.
Today's best UK MacBook deals
M2 Apple MacBook Pro 13-inch - 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.co.uk%2Fdp%2FB0B3C7VSCJ%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-21%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-21" data-link-merchant="Amazon UK"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was £1,349 now £1,199 at Amazon
This 13-inch MacBook Pro sports the M2 chip as well. The Pro series has upgraded specs compared to the Air, making it much more suitable for creative and editing work. It also features a thin and light design as well as an impressive battery life, and the price is definitely right.
M2 Apple MacBook Air - 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.co.uk%2Fdp%2FB0B3B2QRWQ%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-21%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-21" data-link-merchant="Amazon UK"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was £1,149 now £1,059.97 at Amazon
This 13-inch is at the lowest price it's been in a while, putting it close to the MSRP of the M1 MacBook Air. The powerful laptop delivers excellent performance thanks to Apple's M2 chip and features a thin and light design as well as an impressive battery life.
M2 Apple MacBook Air 15-inch - 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.co.uk%2FApple-2023-MacBook-laptop-chip%2Fdp%2FB0C75VLSVX%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-21%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-21" data-link-merchant="Amazon UK"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was £1,599 now £1,469.97 at Amazon
This is the first of the 15-inch line of MacBook Air laptops, sporting the M2 chip as well as additional storage space. If you want the M2 chip laptop with a larger screen, this is a solid deal to take advantage of though still a bit pricey. It still manages to maintain a thin design and an impressive battery life.
M2 Pro Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch - 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD: <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.co.uk%2Fdp%2FB0BSHQL6YK%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-21%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-21" data-link-merchant="Amazon UK"" target="_blank" rel="sponsored">was £2,699 now £2,374.99 at Amazon
This 16-inch MacBook Pro sports the more powerful M2 Pro as well as a larger display and more RAM and storage. This makes it ideal for those who need a machine that can handle editing and creative projects, though you're definitely paying for those upgrades. It also keeps a pretty thin design as well as an impressive battery life.
For more great deals, check out our Amazon Prime Day deals roundup as well as our best Amazon Prime Day Apple deals so far.
Allisa James
Computing Staff Writer
Named by the CTA as a CES 2023 Media Trailblazer, Allisa is a Computing Staff Writer who covers breaking news and rumors in the computing industry, as well as reviews, hands-on previews, featured articles, and the latest deals and trends. In her spare time you can find her chatting it up on her two podcasts, Megaten Marathon and Combo Chain, as well as playing any JRPGs she can get her hands on.
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