This year’s Labor Day sales have hit Apple’s prices hard, and we’ve been seeing eyebrow-raising deals on Apple products across the board. Amazon and Best Buy have caught our attention today, offering the M2 MacBook Air at its lowest-ever price: $799 ($200 less than retail). Best Buy takes it up a notch and offers My Best Buy Plus members an extra $50 discount at $749. Using your Best Buy Membership, you can now get the M2 MacBook Air for lower than its previous lowest — making it the kind of deal that certainly doesn’t hang around too long.
Although Apple recently released the new M3 MacBook Air, the 2022 M2 MacBook Air is still a fantastic machine. It was our top overall best laptop until the M3 took its place, and it still has a super-fast chip and a thin and light design that makes it perfect for getting things done just about anywhere.
CNET’s experts have gathered the best Labor Day laptop deals so you can enjoy deep discounts for work or play.
Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.
One of the great things about the M2 MacBook Air is that it has a larger 13.6-inch screen compared to its predecessor’s 13.3-inch screen, giving you more real estate to work with. It also runs a 2,560×1,664-pixel resolution on a gorgeous Liquid Retina display, which is perfect for watching movies or getting some creative work done. The M2 chip is powerful enough for creatives to do their work, despite this machine’s portability.
Its smaller size is thanks to the fact that it doesn’t have any internal fans, meaning that Apple can make it as thin as the motherboard and battery inside. One downside to this machine is that it runs on 8GB of RAM rather than the 16GB you’re likely to see on similarly priced Windows laptops. It’s not the end of the world, especially given that it’s unified RAM that the M2 is smart about using, but it is something to consider. The 256GB of storage is also a bit on the smaller side, though you can use cloud storage or an external hard drive for more space if you need it.
If you want a higher-end Mac, you can always check out our roundup of great MacBook deals from across the web. Alternatively, check out the best iPad deals to walk away with a quality tablet for less. There are also more Labor Day deals on Amazon and Best Buy to let you take advantage of your Prime and Best Buy memberships during this holiday.
CNET is always covering a wide array of deals on tech products and much more. Start with the hottest sales and discounts on the CNET Deals page, and sign up for the CNET Deals Text to get daily deals sent straight to your phone. Add the free CNET Shopping extension to your browser for real-time price comparisons and cash-back offers. And peruse our gift guide, which includes a full range of ideas for birthdays, anniversaries and more.
