Apple fans received not one, but two surprises this week.
In addition to the new Apple laptop announcements, the Apple Store also kicked off its Back-to-School promo. New for 2018 is the inclusion of Apple’s new 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro laptops with Touch Bar and Touch ID.
However, we strongly suggest you wait a few days — if you can — for a better sale from Best Buy. That’s because Apple’s 2018 Back-to-School sale is very similar to last year’s promo: buy a Mac or iPad Pro and get a free pair of Beats headphones. It’s a mediocre deal at best that’s only available to students, parents, and school faculty via the Apple Education Store.
Currently, Best Buy is taking $150 off Apple's new MacBook Pros for students only. (You get an instant $150 coupon code when you sign up here). So at the moment, the Apple Store's deal is slightly better because you get free headphones. But it’s only a matter of time before Best Buy offers a better and broader discount that's not just for students, but for all shoppers.
Year after year, Best Buy has undercut the Apple Store’s Back-to-School sale and Black Friday sale. So if you can wait a few days, it’ll be worth it.
As for the laptops, both MacBook Pros now pack Intel’s 8th-generation processors. The 13-inch model, which keeps the same $1,799 starting price as the 2017 model, includes a Core i5 CPU, Apple T2 chip, True Tone display, and up to a 2TB SSD SSD.
The 15-inch model, which also keeps its predecessor’s $2,399 base price, offers more performance and value as it houses Intel’s 6-Core Core i7 CPU as well as up to a whopping 4TB of storage. We'll be putting the new Macs through their paces soon, so stay tuned for hands-on impressions.
- Meet the 2018 MacBook Pros
- Best Prime Day Deals You Need to Watch
- Should You Buy a Laptop on Prime Day
