If you’ve been wanting a new MacBook but don’t want to spend a thousand dollars on the latest M4 variant, Best Buy is currently offering the previous-generation M3 MacBook Air with a $250 discount. Prices start at just $849 for the 16GB RAM, 256GB storage variant.
With it, you also get several freebies, including three months of Apple Music and Apple Arcade, along with an additional two months of iCloud+ and Apple TV+.
Although the newer M4 MacBook Air will surely be faster, the M3 MacBook Air is a fantastic deal. You get the same modern design, although it has been somewhat controversial due to the notch, solid color options, and MagSafe, which frees up both USB-C ports for accessories.
As for performance, the M3 chip has 10 CPU and 10 GPU cores, making it capable of handling everything from video editing and browsing to even gaming, which has increasingly been Apple’s focus. Plus, you also get Apple Intelligence support, which unlocks features like Writing Tools, web summaries, and Image Playground.
Then there’s the 13.6-inch 2560×1664 display, with a peak brightness of 500 nits. It’s excellent for working in any lighting scenario. When it comes to battery life, Apple claims up to 18 hours, though you can expect a solid 12-13 hours of screen-on time (SOT) between charges under a medium workload.