MacBook Air M2 512GB - Wait for Apple Education Promotion or Pricebeat?

LChloebri on 02/12/2023 - 17:47

Hi there!
I am going into my first year of University next year, and am looking for a new laptop to get me through a law degree. After doing some research i decided upon the 512gb m2 MacBook Air (with 8gb ram since not doing anything heavier than probs Minecraft on it).

Now this is a part of apples education store, which lists it for $1949. They also typically do a promotion of free AirPods or something every January/February for uni students, but since I already have AirPod pros this is irrelevant to me, so i would probably sell them on fb marketplace etc.

However, I can get 5% off using gift cards at jb Hi-Fi, and from past experiencing of buying myself the iPhone 15, i know they do price match Officeworks price-beat of 5%. I only just missed out on the Costco deal this Black Friday, as by the time i checked Officeworks online, they had dropped their price to $1999 as well.

I was wondering if I should save myself any hassle and buy my MacBook at the Apple Store come January, or if any other deals like the costco one are likely to come up in the time between? At the end of the day, I just want to get the best deal possible on this laptop, since it is going to cost me months of work payslips.

Find Me A Bargain Apple Computer Laptop

Comments

  • sumyungguy on 02/12/2023 - 18:41
    +1

    I was going to suggest refurb store but see the pricing is the same as Education Store for the 13-inch M2 Air

    • Chloebri on 03/12/2023 - 11:01

      Thank you, yeah I had a look at the refurb store and was a bit surprised that the pricing was around the same as the education store but oh well

  • pinchies on 02/12/2023 - 19:21

    May I ask why you are going for the M2 over the M1 when performance is not your priority? You could easily get an excellent used M1 Air with 512GB SSD and 8GB RAM for $1150 delivered on ebay right now. That gives you $750 which might well be more useful to you in the short term as a student.

    Personally, if you're planning to keep it for several years, I would strongly recommend the 16GB of RAM. You'll likely run into RAM limitations before you run into CPU speed limitations.

    • sumyungguy on 02/12/2023 - 19:27

      I'm finding with my Mac Mini M1 it's the 256GB SSD that's annoying

      • pinchies on 02/12/2023 - 19:27

        This one is 512GB…?

        • sumyungguy on 02/12/2023 - 19:29

          Was trying to say that storage for me is a bigger issue than RAM, which is not what I was expecting…

          • pinchies on 02/12/2023 - 19:31

            @sumyungguy: Certainly. A lack of storage leaves you dead in the water! I just upgraded to a used M1, 16GB with 2TB last month for that very reason — even 1TB wasn't enough for me!

            • Losome on 03/12/2023 - 01:42

              @pinchies: You do know you can watch them online, don't you?

              • pinchies on 03/12/2023 - 01:45

                @Losome: Oh haha. 🙄 Try microscopy, machine learning, thermal video, and micro CT datasets.

    • Chloebri on 03/12/2023 - 10:35

      Thank you for your response :)

      I will admit, a large part of the reason I want the M2 over the M1 is due to the overall aesthetics of the laptop. Largely, I really prefer the shape of it as well as the colour ‘starlight’ it comes in. I know this is pretty superficial, but I will have the laptop for (hopefully) the duration of my five year course, so i figured I should splurge to get the laptop I prefer.
      I also heard that the battery life is around 2-3 hours greater with the M2 over the M1, and that the display is much brighter. Although not the biggest difference, I figured both could make my life easier next year, especially if i wanted to work outside etc.

      On the other note, do you really think upgrading to 16GB of RAM would be such a game changer? I have heard a lot of people bagging 8GB of RAM, but since I am not going to be doing anything too heavy like video editing/heavy gaming I figured the extra cost would not really be necessary. Really, I just want this laptop to last me at the very least the next 5 years, so if you don’t think 8GB would be enough to do that I may reconsider and get the 13 inch M1 512GB SSD, 16GB RAM instead.

      • pinchies on 03/12/2023 - 11:08

        I personally would not recommend 8GB of RAM for anyone, especially not on a $2000 machine that you’re wanting to last a few years.

      • sumyungguy on 03/12/2023 - 13:22

        I get the impression 8GB is ok for an M2 Macbook but there's a more noticable performance bump for M3 with 16GB

        • pinchies on 04/12/2023 - 06:00
          +1

          I bought an 8GB M1 Macbook in 2020 and returned it after finding it completely unsuitable. Even just a couple PDFs, Word/PPT docs, 4k external monitor and a bunch of youtube tabs were enough to clog it up.

          • WindDrifter on 19/12/2023 - 21:06
            +1

            @pinchies: I wish I had read this before I bought my M2 with 8GB absolute crap! Can't handle chrome at all.

            • pinchies on 19/12/2023 - 22:53

              @WindDrifter: Please spread the message. What apple is doing selling un-upgradable 8GB models is shamefully and intentionally anti-consumer.

  • solidussnake on 03/12/2023 - 08:27

    You need to jump on the next TCN/Coles GC next time they have 10/15% off, then wait for a JB/GG 10% off sale !!

    • Chloebri on 03/12/2023 - 10:41

      Ugh I am always just too late to these promotions. By the time I hear about the promotion and get to the store, all of the cards with Officeworks/jb hifi are gone and only the like ‘active’ ones remain. Is there a way to get notified when similar promotions start? Or do you just have to constantly check?

      Also, what are the odds there is one of these sales before January?

      Thankyou for your response :)

      • CrispyChrispy on 03/12/2023 - 10:42
        +1

        Typically these gift card deals are posted a week or so out in advance, so just subscribe to gift card deals here so you are at least aware :)

        No telling when they will actually pop up though, just have to keep a keen eye out

        • Chloebri on 03/12/2023 - 11:03
          +1

          Thank you so much! I was looking for a similar page like that but couldn’t find it. Subscribed :)

  • pinchies on 08/12/2023 - 23:57

    Check out this listing @Chloebri
    https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/335148795052

    • Chloebri on 09/12/2023 - 14:34

      Thankyou @pinchies, but the listing sold by the time I checked. I think I’m just going to go to the Apple Store during the education promotion, so I can get free AirPods etc and the discounted price, and through my dad’s work I can also get 5% off gift cards so it shouldn’t be too bad. I also reckon I’ll spend the extra $270 to get the 16GB of RAM, you’ve convinced me :)

  • siniganesan on 09/12/2023 - 08:18

    Hi Guys, just want to ask, i am thinking of ordering a Macbook pro from Uni store, am not a student. Would they be checking any id during checkout or while during delivery, Would it be of any issues while claiming any warranty?

    • Chloebri on 09/12/2023 - 14:36

      I’m pretty sure they verify using the app/website UNiDAYS? I’m not too sure though, that’s just what a friend told me

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join