Mahmoud Itani / Android Authority
I just can’t believe we keep reporting about how the Apple MacBook Air M2 offers so much bang for your buck. Apple has been commonly known for its unreasonably high prices, but things are changing, at least in the laptop space. Now, the Apple MacBook Air M2 is one of the best laptops money can buy for most common consumers. Especially now that it’s on sale for just $799.
Get the Apple MacBook Air M2 for $799 ($200 off)
This offer is available from Amazon. It’s for the MacBook Air M2 with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The discount is available for all color versions: Midnight, Silver, Space Gray, and Starlight.
Apple MacBook Air 13-Inch (M2, 16GB, 256GB)
Apple MacBook Air 13-Inch (M2, 16GB, 256GB)
Thin, light, and powerful
The MacBook Air with an M2 chip brings the thin and lightweight design you’d expect from an Air, but with all the might of the M2 silicon.
Now, this is not the best deal we’ve seen on the Apple MacBook Air M2 laptop. It was actually $749 for some days last month. That said, those $749 deals are very rare, and we have only seen them pop up a few times. The next best offer is this one, and it’s still a great one.
I actually own this specific version, and scored the bigger discount last December. I have not looked back. This computer is great, and I would still get it at $799.
The Apple MacBook Air M2 may be a previous-generation device, but we think it’s a better offer than the new M3 model. The difference between these is not significant enough to justify the price bump. Right now, the MacBook Air M3 is also discounted, but the price is still $1,099 at the lowest. That is a $300 difference!
Oliver Cragg / Android Authority
The M3 chip does offer a performance upgrade, but the M2 is still plenty powerful and most people might not even notice the difference. And both models have 16GB of RAM, so there’s no real difference there. I have never encountered a hiccup, and it has run any app I’ve thrown at it with ease. I commonly use it to edit RAW photos in Lightroom and Photoshop, and many of our coworkers edit 4K videos with the M2 processor. With that in mind, we are sure most people will not need any more power.
Other parts of the laptop are great, too. This is an Apple product, after all! It gets that iconic metal exterior and thin profile the Air line-up is known for. It looks and feels fantastic. It also has premium features like a backlit keyboard, a large glass trackpad, MagSafe charging, and an excellent 18-hour battery life.
The display is pretty amazing, too. It is a bit small at 13.6 inches, but that keeps the laptop portable. Moving past the size, you will enjoy a 2,560 x 1,664 resolution. Most other high-end laptops top off at 1,080p or 1,440p, so this $799 MacBook beats all of those in the display department. And if you care for color accuracy, this panel can reproduce the DCI-P3 color spectrum.
This deal has been coming and going for some time, so the cost could jump back up at any moment. Don’t miss this one! Go get yours while you can.
Extra deal: If you really want the most performance for as little money as possible!
Now, if you really want to get the most performance possible for as little money as possible, here’s what we would recommend. The Apple Mac Mini M4 is only $529 right now. This is actually still its record-low price, so it has never been any cheaper in the past, making it a great time to get this tiny desktop PC.
As its name implies, the Mac Mini M4 comes with an M4 chip. This chip is newer and better than the M2 and M3 found in the two latest MacBook Airs, so you’ll enjoy a nice bump in performance. It also has much better active cooling, which should keep your processor running at higher loads for longer, as heat can slow down your computer. It also still has 16GB of RAM.
All that said, this is not really a direct competitor for MacBooks. The Mac Mini, while easy to transport thanks to the 5 x 5 x 2in measurements, is not portable. You’ll need to keep it connected to an outlet, and you’ll obviously also need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse or trackpad. We know some of you already have those, though. Or maybe you prefer getting even better peripherals than what a MacBook offers.
Another benefit is that it comes with more port options. It has two USB-C connections and a 3.5mm headset jack in the front. The back also has another two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt support, an Ethernet connection, and a full HDMI output, along with the power port.
This one’s performance will actually be a significant upgrade over any Apple MacBook Air, and it’s much cheaper. You really can’t go wrong with it if you don’t mind providing your own screen and peripherals.
