Apple Prime Day deals have arrived early with the M2 MacBook Air slashed to a new low of $799

Here’s a sweet deal for Amazon Prime Day: You can pick up the base 13-inch M2 MacBook Air for just $799 right now. The laptop is $200 off as part of Apple’s Prime Day deals, and the savings apply to all color options, so you can get one in this gorgeous Midnight finish. That’s the price for the models without AppleCare+ — you’ll have to spend just under $1,000 if you want that add-on.

This model isn’t exactly the best of the MacBook Air range anymore. It’s been supplanted by the M3-powered MBA, which is now our pick for the best overall MacBook. But if you want to save money and still have a very capable Apple laptop to carry around, the M2 variant is our pick for the best budget MacBook – this latest discount makes it even easier to recommend.

Apple

The base 13-inch M2 MacBook Air has dropped to a record low of $799. It was already our favorite budget MacBook and now it’s an even better deal at this price.

$799 on Amazon

Engadget’s Devindra Hardawar called the M2 Air a “near-perfect Mac” in his 2022 review, giving it a 96. One of the first things you’ll notice is the 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display, which can reach a commendable 500 nits of brightness and has a 60Hz refresh rate. The inclusion of a 1080p webcam is welcome, while the triple-mic array does a solid job of capturing your voice for calls. The speakers are also impressive, especially for a laptop that’s just 11.3 millimeters thick and weighs just 2.7 pounds.

Despite the slim form factor, Apple has still satisfied fans of physical headphone jacks by keeping the 3.5mm port. There are also two USB-C Thunderbolt ports and a MagSafe charging connector. You shouldn’t have to worry too much about leaving your charger at home when you head to the office: the MacBook Air M2’s battery should easily last you through a workday, unless you’re doing power-hungry tasks like video editing.

The MBA M2 should handle everyday tasks with relative ease, and you’ll also be able to play a bunch of App Store and Steam games on it (good luck doing anything else if you install Balatro). One of our biggest reservations about the base M2 Air is that there’s only 8GB of memory. That doesn’t seem like enough these days, and unfortunately Apple charges extra for RAM upgrades. Still, if you just want a MacBook Air that ticks pretty much all the boxes most people will need for a few years, this is a great option.

It’s also worth noting that some interesting features are coming with macOS Sequoia later this year, including the ability to mirror your iPhone to your Mac and a new Passwords app. Apple Intelligence features will also be coming to M1 Macs and later.

Your Prime Day Shopping Guide:See all our Prime Day cover. Shop the best Prime Day deals on Yahoo Life. Follow Engadget for Prime Day Tech DealsListen to Autoblog experts talk about the best Amazon Prime Day Deals for your car, garage and home, and find Prime Day Sales to shop on AOL, selected especially for you.