Apple's MacBook prices surge, but you can still snag deals before the hike

prices surge, but you can still snag deals before the hike">

Apple just raised the prices on Macs and iPads in response to the rising costs of memory chips, right in the middle of Amazon Prime Day. That means existing discounts (even small ones) on Apple laptops like the MacBook Neo, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro just became significantly better deals. As an example, the 13-inch MacBook Air M5 that used to start at $1,099 and is currently on sale for $949.99 (at Costco) will soon carry a full retail price of $1,299.

That initial $150 discount just became a savings of $350 compared to Apple's upcoming pricing. There's no guarantee how long existing sales will stick around, and no official word on when major laptop retailers will reset all their Mac pricing to reflect the increases. Best Buy and B&H Photo have already updated their pricing, but some older prices or even cheaper deals are lingering at Amazon.

Costco lists its member-only deals as valid through June 26th or 27th. If you were considering an Apple computer purchase, it might be best to make a move while you can. We're outlining all the deals we can find below.

The base 256GB MacBook Neo is selling for $589.99 at Amazon and Costco (in the citrus color only). Normally that'd be a paltry $10 discount, but with Apple raising the Neo's base price to $699 it's now a savings of $110. The 512GB version with Touch ID is $689.99 (a $110 discount compared to the new price) at Amazon and Costco.

Best Buy still has the base 256GB model and 512GB model for the old prices of $599 and $699, respectively. That at least saves you the $100 price increase for now. The base 13-inch MacBook Air with an M5 chip, 16GB of memory, and 512GB of storage is $949 at Amazon, Best Buy, and Costco.

That's such a better price than the $1,299 Apple is now charging, but you have to be a Costco member. The 13-inch Air with two more GPU cores and 1TB of storage is $1,149.99 ($449 off the new price) at Amazon The 15-inch Air with base 16GB / 512GB configuration is currently on sale for $1,149.99 (also $350 off its new price) at Amazon, Best Buy, and Costco. As good as the Neo is, the Air is still Apple's best all-around laptop.

Its balance of performance, battery life, and portability is still unmatched. And for $949 or $1,149 you're getting a laptop that should last you the better part of a decade for what's sadly now such a good deal. The base 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip is my personal favorite sweet spot of Apple's lineup if you do frequent content creation but can't fathom paying much higher M5 Pro / M5 Max prices.