On his part, Apple is not a fan of discounts. Thankfully, you can rely on third-party vendors to hold sales across their devices. This is where Amazon comes in. Amazon’s Prime Day sale runs from October 8 to 9, and you’ll find a variety of Prime Day Apple deals on MacBooks, AirPods, iPads, and more.
We don’t recommend anything we haven’t tested, and we test all year round. Want to read full reviews? Check out our guides to the best MacBooks, the best AirPods, the best iPads, and the best Apple watches. You have to be a Prime member to access the deals during sales, which are technically called Big Deal Days, but you can get a free trial, and Prime offers a lot of exciting benefits. Below, we’ve rounded up all the best discounts on our top-rated devices.
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MacBook deals
Image: Apple
According to rumors, MacBooks with M4 power may launch as soon as this month. But the MacBook Pro with M3 was introduced last year — so it’s still a good choice. It packs a bright display with a thin LED panel and a 120-Hz refresh rate, as well as a 1080p webcam. It comes with plenty of ports too, including two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4, HDMI, a MagSafe charging port, a high-impedance headphone jack, and an SD card slot. We recommend it if you’re looking for a MacBook Pro without spending $2,000 or more.
The M3-powered MacBook Air (7/10, WIRED Recommends) isn’t all that different from the M2 model, but it’s a good alternative—especially if you’re looking for a reliable laptop for everyday tasks and more. It has a 13.6-inch LCD screen and a notch with a 1080p webcam, while the M3 also offers a nice upgrade in performance compared to the original M1. You can also use it with two external displays, which is an improvement from the single external support that came with older chips.
Photo: Brenda Stolyar
The 15-inch MacBook Air (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is a great choice if you want a bigger screen, but don’t want to spend money on a MacBook Pro. It packs all the same features as the 13-inch MacBook Air, including a modern design and a 1080p web camera, as well as an M3 chip. The base model comes equipped with an 8-core CPU and a 10-core GPU that handles tasks with ease. We recommend that you upgrade to at least 16 GB of integrated memory to ensure that it can handle a large number of apps and tabs running simultaneously.
If you’re looking for an external display to pair with your MacBook, the Studio Display (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is a great choice. It has a large 27-inch screen that plans to display multiple applications at once, and the sharp screen delivers accurate colors. There’s also a 12-megapixel camera, as well as built-in microphones and speakers, making it ideal for video calls. It doesn’t have HDR—so colors look more saturated and different from the neutral tones you’ll find on Apple’s Pro Display XDR—but the 5K resolution is incredibly sharp.
iPad deals
Image: Apple
This is Apple’s latest iPad Pro tablet (6/10, Review by WIRED). It comes with the biggest number of long-term upgrades, including a bigger and brighter display, an improved OLED screen, and a front-facing camera moved to landscape mode. It is also powered by the M4 chip (launched in May), which brings smooth and fast performance. It’s not that different from the tablet with the M2, so if you don’t need the latest version, we still highly recommend the predecessor if it’s also on sale.
This is the latest iPad Air (8/10, WIRED Recommends), which came out back in May. It comes in two sizes: 11 inches and 13 inches. The latter is not only big but also bright, which makes it great to use as a second display for work or watching TV. It also comes equipped with an M2 processor (the same one that powers the 13-inch MacBook Air and MacBook Pro from 2022), which delivers excellent performance. Apple has moved the front-facing 12-megapixel camera to the country’s branding, so it’s not easy to use for video calls. It has a USB-C port, small bezels, and Touch ID built into the top power button.
Image: Apple; Getty Images
The iPad (10th-gen) (7/10, WIRED Review) is our top pick for most people. It comes with a large 10.9-inch Liquid Retina (IPS LCD) display, a touch-ID sensor integrated with the power button, a USB-C port instead of lightning, and a 12-megapixel rear camera (an improvement from the 8- megapixels). The 12-MP selfie camera has been moved to the center of the iPad. It is powered by the A14 Bionic chip, which brings slightly faster performance and better graphics than its predecessor.
We still don’t think the ninth-generation iPad (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is the best for most people (mainly because it’s three years old and packs an older A13 Bionic chip). But it’s still a solid choice if you’re looking for a budget tablet. It’s affordable and comes with a lot of goodies like 64 GB of storage in the base model, a 12-megapixel rear camera (with Center Stage support), a Touch ID-enabled home button, and a True Tone display. It’s also compatible with a variety of accessories including the first-generation Apple Pencil and Apple’s Smart Keyboard.
The iPad MiniImage: Apple
Apple is expected to announce a new iPad Mini in November or early next year, so I recommend you wait for this one if you can. But if you can’t, this is still a great tablet. The 8.3-inch display is great for drawing, taking notes, reading ebooks, and watching movies. It also has Touch ID built into the power button, a front-facing camera with Center Stage, and an A15 Bionic processor (as seen in the iPhone 13) that can handle taxing apps or games.
This is the latest and most feature-packed Apple Pencil. It comes with a “squeeze” ability that activates the tool palette (but you can still use double-tapping), a haptic engine inside that delivers feedback when you press on a tile, and a built-in gyroscope sensor that lets you change the shape of tools as you twist them for better control. It also comes with Apple’s Find My Network support in case you lose it. However, it only works with iPad Air (M2) and iPad Pro (M4).
Apple’s second-generation Pencil is a step below the new Apple Pencil Pro. It comes with tilt sensitivity, pressure sensitivity, handwriting support, and a double-tap feature that lets you quickly switch between tools by double-tapping the stylus. It also has support for wireless pairing and wireless charging—meaning it automatically charges when connected to the top edge of supported iPads. In terms of compatibility, it works with iPad Mini (6th Gen), iPad Air (4th Gen and later), iPad Pro 11-inch (1st Gen and later), and 12.9-inch (3rd Gen and later).
AirPods deals
Image: Apple; Getty Images
In addition to above-average sound quality—with refined highs, solid bass, and excellent noise cancellation—the AirPods Pro (8/10, WIRED Recommends) come with a host of useful features. There’s Conversation Awareness, which lowers your music and background noise when it detects you’re having a conversation, and an Adaptive Transparency mode that combines noise cancellation and transparency to adjust noise. Thanks to the U1 chip, they are also supported by the Find My app in case you lose the buds.
Apple’s AirPods Max (8/10, WIRED Recommends) deliver rich bass, excellent noise cancellation, and a large soundstage. They have good build quality too, with soft fabric earcups (replaceable) and a springy mesh strap. They integrate with iOS devices seamlessly, with the ability to automatically switch back and forth between iOS devices. Last month, Apple introduced the USB-C version. They are similar to the Lightning version without the charging port. They are also sold in selected colors.
Apple Watch deals
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Series 10 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) has only been out for a month, but it’s already selling out. Our top picks for all Apple Watches. It’s thinner and lighter than its predecessor, and has fast charging and watchOS 11 support, so you’ll have access to features like Vitals (to check if you’re off your baseline every morning) and Training Load (where you can see how your workouts affect your fitness) . The standout feature, however, is breathing disorders, which uses a built-in accelerometer to let you know if you have sleep apnea.
The Ultra 2 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is our favorite outdoor sports watch. It has dual-frequency precision GPS, offline maps (you’ll need to download them to your iPhone), and the ability to see your cycling time as a live activity on your iPhone. It also has an Action button, which you can use to launch Backtrack (Apple’s navigation feature that creates visible breadcrumb trails in the Compass app that you can follow back home). It is powered by the S9 chip for performance, and an ultra-wideband chip with improved precision detection.
Apple Accessory Deals
Photo: Simon Hill
If you already work on a MacBook and have an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods, you probably need a compact 3-in-1 charger for your desk or nightstand. This is our favorite, and it can charge your iPhone at the fastest speed Apple allows and also charge your Watch Series 7 or newer. Look for a Qi2-certified charger, which allows for faster, more efficient magnetic charging.— Adrienne So
This is the best charger if you have other MagSafe accessories you want to keep, like a wallet or tripod (it won’t charge your power bank). It’s also shiny, and Spigen’s accessories are reliable.— Adrienne So
This is the best 3-in-1 charger for travel, as it folds up very compactly and allows you to quickly charge your Qi2-certified iPhone. You must wrap the Apple Watch charger.— Adrienne So
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