$0 dollar discount? Who is going to buy M1 Air then?
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M1 Air price drop $0 after M2 Air is announced
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People who think the M2 is too expensive or to powerful for their needs.
The lack of a price drop is likely due to the current inflation.
The lack of a price drop is likely due to the current inflation.
>>>Who is going to buy M1 Air then?
People outside of the US / North America, who will need to pay what translates to the same money for an M2 MBA that Americans can buy a new 13" M2 MBP for. If I was in the market for an M2 MBA I'd be waiting for one to appear in the Apple Refurbished store, to get it for the price I should be paying for it.
People outside of the US / North America, who will need to pay what translates to the same money for an M2 MBA that Americans can buy a new 13" M2 MBP for. If I was in the market for an M2 MBA I'd be waiting for one to appear in the Apple Refurbished store, to get it for the price I should be paying for it.
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M1 Air is on sale all the time if you buy from a third party retailer, so it's a good deal if you can get it for around $899 or maybe even less
Just make sure your 'third-party retailer' is an authorised seller. It's only a few weeks ago since we had someone join here who'd bought a brand new macbook from a trusted 'third-party retailer'. I forget the exact circumstances why he ended up calling Apple, I think it was something to do with buying AppleCare+, but he found out that his machine was written-off 'missing in action' stock. Basically it was a computer that here in the UK we would euphemistically say had "fallen off the back of a lorry". As far as Apple were concerned it no longer existed, and they weren't prepared to reverse that status. Potentially that will bring all kind of complications down the line, such as when installing upgrades and the upgrade script checks the machine's serial number for authenticity, or when requesting warranty repairs.
Far, far safer IMO to buy from the Apple refurbished store, if you want to save money.
Far, far safer IMO to buy from the Apple refurbished store, if you want to save money.
I would say it's far from likely, but there is a possibility Apple is planning on announcing another computer for their lineup. Rumors should always be taken with a grain of salt, but there has been a lot of talk of Apple resurrecting the 12 inch macbook as a lower-end entry level model in the next year or so. If so, I wouldn't be surprised if they price it at $999 and make it the new entry into the Mac ecosystem.
I think there'd be a market for it in the right price range, but the downside to such an approach would be that the same $999 entry that got you a 13 inch air would now only get you a 12 inch macbook, so you'd essentially be getting less for your money (although to be fair, with inflation it probably evens out anyway. Some might also find the 12 inch form factor preferable, but this is subjective). This isn't really going to change anything for those of us already buying higher end models or who buy the Pro models, but for students and for folks who buy the $999 air instead of $500 Windows laptops, the $999 price tag is an investment.
The 13 inch for $999 was a bargain and a no brainer. If it were to be replaced with a (still hypothetical) future 12 inch at the same price point, it waits to be seen whether it would be perceived as the same bargain for the entry level market. I have my doubts, but we will see. All of this is pure speculation at this point.
I think there'd be a market for it in the right price range, but the downside to such an approach would be that the same $999 entry that got you a 13 inch air would now only get you a 12 inch macbook, so you'd essentially be getting less for your money (although to be fair, with inflation it probably evens out anyway. Some might also find the 12 inch form factor preferable, but this is subjective). This isn't really going to change anything for those of us already buying higher end models or who buy the Pro models, but for students and for folks who buy the $999 air instead of $500 Windows laptops, the $999 price tag is an investment.
The 13 inch for $999 was a bargain and a no brainer. If it were to be replaced with a (still hypothetical) future 12 inch at the same price point, it waits to be seen whether it would be perceived as the same bargain for the entry level market. I have my doubts, but we will see. All of this is pure speculation at this point.
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it's just Apple's way of increasing prices without actually increasing them. In a couple of years the M1 will be phased out and £1,250, as it is in the UK, the new standard entry level for the Air.
I think it's pretty impressive that the Air has been less than £1,000 for as long as it has, really. I bought two new Airs, seven years apart, at the same price point.
I think it's pretty impressive that the Air has been less than £1,000 for as long as it has, really. I bought two new Airs, seven years apart, at the same price point.
I think it may be a combination of what you said and they do not want to take too much from iPad sales. The 11" iPad base model is $799.00 and the 12.9" base is $1199. With the M1 Air falling near in the middle of the two (sure closer to the 12.9"), but leaves the consumer to debate which they may want.
I wondered about this too, especially with iPadOS becoming more capable. iPads are slowly becoming more and more Mac-like and I have friends who literally don't even own computers and use iPads as their only computing device. That's probably fine for the everyday user, but for developers, gamers, or folks who otherwise need to do more Mac-like things, the iPad is still far too locked down and fundamentally can't run the same kinds of things that a Mac can.
It seems Apple is slowly positioning the iPad as a great device for everyday use cases, and the more expensive Macbooks and Macbook Pros for folks who need a computer. It works out great for those whom an iPad is sufficient, but for many of us who depend on Macs, the prices are going up.
Still fairly priced given the sheer power of Apple Silicon (in my opinion). If anything, some of these systems are a bargain, but even the cheapest ones are powerhouses, and they are priced as such. And it's slowly raising the price of entry to the Mac ecosystem for those who don't need high-end computers, but who still don't want to use iPadOS.
That was my first thought, but then I also realized that at the same $999 price point as when it was first announced, with cumulative inflation probably being 15-20% since then, it is sort of like a "real" 15-20% price cut after inflation is considered.
And I'm not really sure that for the average person the extra cost of an M2 MBA is money well-spent, but I guess we'll see when we start getting real world results and comparisons. One X-factor is that the M2 will likely get support and OS updates for an extra 1-2 years.
And I'm not really sure that for the average person the extra cost of an M2 MBA is money well-spent, but I guess we'll see when we start getting real world results and comparisons. One X-factor is that the M2 will likely get support and OS updates for an extra 1-2 years.
If I was buying new I might go for the M1 and put the money into SSD or 16GB.
It's really a soft price inflation, and is sort of a self correct for how amazing the M1 Air value was for the last year and a half.
It's really a soft price inflation, and is sort of a self correct for how amazing the M1 Air value was for the last year and a half.
It might just be there for the US "Back to School" season - for which the M2 Air (still not actually available, remember) is a bit too late, and will most likely be heavily discounted by third parties, if not Apple. Long term, I suspect it's just "inflation" which is unwelcome but inevitable. Bottom line is that the M1 MBA has probably been selling like hot cakes, so Apple think they can afford to charge a bit more.
I hope they're not going to go to the "entry level == last year's model" cycle they have tended to adopt with the iPhone.
As for the "12 inch coming" theory, we've been here a couple of times before - the 11" MBA used to be the entry-level Mac, but Apple dropped that. The 12" MB looked destined for a price cut as soon as the novelty wore out but got dropped instead. So will Apple have a third bite at the cherry? If the 12" failure was down to Intel not supplying the right chips, maybe.
...but having the M1 Air, the M2 Air and the M2 13" Pro all at once does seem like a bit of an unnecessary pile-up.
People for who an M1 will work for years to come. Furthermore, several times MR here has featured articles about discounts to M1 MBA.
lol,wanna know what ? the m1 actually INCREASED in price after the m2 launch
+80 euros in france
+150 euros in italy
in most if not all eu countries,but also in india,as far as i know
errr
+80 euros in france
+150 euros in italy
in most if not all eu countries,but also in india,as far as i know
errr
I might grab one if I see someone moving to M2 and offering a good deal locally
Gotta' be 16GB RAM for me though, which will severely limit the likelihood of one showing up at a good price
Gotta' be 16GB RAM for me though, which will severely limit the likelihood of one showing up at a good price
there is a 1/1000 ratio when it comes to 16gb mba on second hand market -versus 8gb ,be it base or 512gb ROM-
which is why i got a 8gb...and i regret it so damn much
That and the fact that the M2 Air isn't actually in stores just yet.
Not that I expect Apple to drop the price on the M1s after M2 is out. But retailers will certainly have to get going if they want to rid themselves of M1 inventory.
Yeah, I know. Any time there is a deal, it is always on the 8GB model. I don't recall ever seeing a significant discount on the 16.
Wow really? It’s still £999 in the UK. Cant see how they price it any higher than that and keep it any kind of appealing, given the cost of the M2.
Same thing happened when the 2018 redesign came out. They kept the old pre-retina 2017 at the same $999 price, while the 2018 started at $1,200. They lowered the price in every refresh until it was finally back to $999 in 2020.
With inflation at 40 year highs, not going to see many companies lowering prices.