The best Amazon Prime Day laptop deals for 2023
Amazon's latest Prime Day sale includes a handful of deals on notebooks we like, from MacBooks to Chromebooks to gaming laptops. Prime Day usually brings decent laptop sales, but the biggest downside is that your only options are the configurations that Amazon offers. There's usually good variety, but we still recommend going directly to your manufacturer of choice if you want to spec out your new machine precisely. But for those who are comfortable picking up a pre-configured model, here are the best Prime Day laptop deals we could find this year.
Apple MacBook Air M2 (15-inch)The 15.3-inch version of Apple's MacBook Air M2 is down to $1,399 for a configuration with 8GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. That's a modest $50 drop from its usual price on Amazon, but the notebook only just arrived last month, and it's $100 less than buying from Apple directly. The M2 Air is the top pick in our guide to the best laptops, and we gave it a review score of 96 in June. It checks just about all the requisite boxes for a mainstream notebook, with a thin and light design, bright and accurate display, comfortable keyboard, long-lasting battery, and more than enough performance for everyday use. This 15-inch model has all the same benefits of the prior 13-inch model, but adds a more powerful speaker system and slightly upgraded GPU alongside the bigger screen.
Apple MacBook Air M1The M1 MacBook Air released back in 2020, but it remains a worthy option if you want a Mac for light work and web browsing for as little cash as possible. The entry-level configuration is now on sale for $750, which is a new low. Apple sells this device for $999, though we've seen it go for $799 for most of the past few months. This model's keyboard, trackpad, display and battery life continue to impress, and the quiet M1 chip is still fast enough for the essentials. This configuration is strictly for casual use, though, as it only has 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. You'll have to live with a more basic 720p webcam, too, and you'll miss out on the improved speakers and slimmer bezels of the M2 model. We gave the M1 Air a review score of 94 at launch.
Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (2023)While the MacBook Air is more than enough laptop for most, the MacBook Pro should appeal to creatives who need more power for serious media editing. As of this writing, the 14.2-inch Pro with an M2 Pro chip, 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD is available for $1,799. We've seen it go for $50 less in the past, but if you don't want to wait for another sale, this is still $200 cheaper than buying from Apple direct. Apart from the faster internals, the Pro's mini-LED display can get brighter than the Air for HDR content, plus it has a 120Hz refresh rate for smoother motion. There's also a wider port selection, including three Thunderbolt 4 ports, an HDMI 2.1 port and an SDXC card reader. There's no USB-A port, though, and the chassis is thicker and heavier. We reviewed this notebook back in January and gave it a score of 92.
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (2023)A similar configuration of the 16-inch MacBook Pro is available for $2,299. Again, this isn't an all-time low, but it's about $75 lower than this model's average street price in recent months and $200 off Apple's MSRP. Compared to its smaller counterpart, the 16-inch Pro is rated for a few more hours of battery life, and the base config here has a slightly beefier CPU and GPU.
Acer Chromebook C423This Acer Chromebook with a Celeron processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage is down to a new low of $180 for Prime Day. Acer makes some of our favorite Chromebooks, and while you can find more powerful models, this C423 laptop should work well if you plan on using the machine for web browsing, email checking and other simple tasks. If you'd rather invest in a strong Chromebook, this Prime Day sale also includes the Acer Chromebook Spin 314 with a Pentium processor, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage for $339.
Acer Nitro 5The Acer Nitro 5 is the runner up pick in our guide to the best budget gaming laptops, and right now a configuration with a Core i5-12500H, GeForce RTX 3050 Ti, 144Hz 1080p display, 16GB of RAM and 512GB is available for $780. That's a new low and roughly $120 off this model's typical street price. This is a chunky plastic machine, and you'll need to ratchet down the settings in certain games to hit a decent frame rate. But getting a 144Hz display and enough power to keep up with modern games is a plus at this price. As an affordable yet competent entry point to PC gaming, it's a fine value.
Razer Blade 15A configuration of the Razer Blade 15 with a Core i7-12800H processor, GeForce RTX 3070 Ti GPU, 240Hz QHD display, 16GB of RAM and 1TB SSD is down to $1,923 for Prime Day. That's about $375 off its usual street price in recent months. We gave the Blade 15 a review score of 86 last year, and we currently recommend it as a premium pick in our guide to the best gaming laptops. This config is a 2022 model - the latest version is largely a spec bump - but it'll still be powerful enough to play most modern games at high settings and frame rates, particularly with DLSS. The main reason to pay the premium for any Blade laptop, though, is because it packs that power in a slim and premium-feeling aluminum design. Just note that it can run hot, and that its battery life is fairly short.
If you want a larger 17-inch display, a version of the Blade 17 with similar specs is available for $2,000. The smaller Blade 14, meanwhile, is more modestly discounted at $2,300 for a 2022 config with a Ryzen 9 6900HX, RTX 3080 Ti and 165Hz display.
Your Prime Day Shopping Guide: See all of our Prime Day coverage. Shop the best Prime Day deals on Yahoo Life. Follow Engadget for the best Amazon Prime Day tech deals. Learn about Prime Day trends on In the Know. Hear from Autoblog's car experts on must-shop auto-related Prime Day deals and find Prime Day sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/amazon-prime-day-2023-laptop-deals-121617911.html?src=rss