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Amazon is getting ready for it's October Prime Day early with some excellent deals on big-name brands like Apple, Samsung, LG, HP and more. Even competitors like Best Buy and Walmart are getting in on saving with sales of their own. If you're still working on your old, glitchy laptop, this is a great opportunity for a major upgrade right before the holiday season. However, you'll have to act fast because these kinds of deals can be volatile. Not sure which is the best? Check out our expert laptop reviews to find the right product for you.
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Several Apple MacBook models are already discounted on Amazon, including the Apple MacBook Air with the M3 chip. The 13-inch MacBook Air M3 with 8GB of unified memory is currently on sale for $999, a savings of $100. If you want to snag a proper laptop for college or splurge on a top-tier gaming computer, we've got you covered. You can save $300 on the HP FHD gaming laptop right now at Walmart's Anti-Prime Day sale. Want to save even more this Prime Day? You could earn a $150 Amazon gift card instantly upon approval of the Prime Visa card.
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It's worth noting that some of these Amazon deals are exclusive to Prime members. To see these prices, make sure you're signed into your account. That said, non-Prime subscribers can still take advantage of sales, as the Amazon prime day event serves as the unofficial kick off to the holiday shopping season. But if you'd like to take advantage of these bargains, you better take action soon, as there's no telling when these deals will disappear.
Best early Prime Day laptop deals
Get the lowest price to date on Apple's M1 MacBook Air. Although it's a few years old now, this Air is still plenty powerful for most folks and a super affordable way to put an Apple silicon-powered machine in your bag. In our roundup of the best laptops of 2024, our editors selected this model as the best laptop for students.
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Although not the most recent model, this 2022 version still has a powerful M2 chip and gives you many of the great specs the M3 has at a lower price.
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This 13-inch MacBook Air has an M3 chip, 8GB of memory and a 256GB solid-state drive. The MacBook Air M3 was chosen as the best overall laptop in our roundup of the best laptops of 2024. It's currently listed on Amazon for $999, a $100 discount. Multiple colors are available at this price.
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With the crazy fast M3 chip and Liquid Retina XDR display, an HD camera and a battery life of up to 18 hours, this is a top-tier laptop that is mercifully discounted by $300 right now if you opt for the silver variant.
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In their roundup of the best laptops for college, our CNET reviews team experts Matt Elliott and Joshua Goldman dubbed the Acer Chromebook Spin 714 the "best Chromebook that will last for years." It's versatile, with a touchscreen and hinge, and durable. And right now Best Buy has taken $170 off the price.
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More early Prime Day laptop deals:
- Acer Aspire A315 slim 15-inch laptop: $300 (save $22). The thinnest, lightest laptop in the Acer Aspire lineup, the A315 offers a full HD display and an improved thermal system.
- Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3: $732 (save $63). At under 3 pounds, this 12-inch touchscreen laptop is ultraportable.
- HP Stream 14-inch laptop: $199 (save $30). Score a basic laptop with decent specs for under $200. It comes with a free 12-month subscription to Microsoft 365.
- Samsung 14-inch Galaxy Book4 Pro: $1,150 (save $300). A high-end laptop with a more portable feel.
- HP Spectre x360: $1,199 (save $400). Our editor's pick as the best convertible laptop of 2024.
- LG Gram 14-inch laptop: $999 (save $100). A lightweight laptop that focuses on productivity.
- HP Pavillion Plus 14-inch laptop: $1,097 (save $203). Specs designed for multitasking.
- Apple MacBook Pro M3 16-inch: $1,999 (save $500). The biggest screen and the most powerful processor.
- HP EliteBook 860 16-inch G11 Notebook: $1,311 (save $1,290). You'll get a three-year warranty and Wolf Pro Security, too.
- HP Envy x360 2-in-1 laptop: $800 (save $250). Switch from laptop to tablet without losing the processor, speed or graphics.
Is Prime Day the best time to shop for a laptop?
Prime Day offers a huge array of products on sale, and among those are laptops. However, you don't have to limit yourself to Amazon for amazing deals. Frequently, outlets like Best Buy will offer incredibly competitive pricing during Prime Day events like the Prime Big Deal Days sale. We also see Walmart doing the same. Overall, Prime Day is a great time to grab a laptop at a discount, although Black Friday tends to offer the very lowest prices if you can hold out until later in the holiday shopping season. Of course, supplies tend to be more limited then, so plan ahead in either case.
Should I buy a Chromebook or a laptop?
Chromebooks are a budget-friendly option that may appeal to students looking for a cheaper laptop for college. They work well performing basic functions like web browsing and writing essays but don't have all of the features of a normal laptop. The biggest difference is that Chromebooks run on Google's Chrome operating system as opposed to the Windows or MacOS systems you may be used to seeing in a laptop. This operating system is a bit more limited and many software programs are not natively compatible with it.
Ultimately, the best choice will come down to your needs and budget. If you're a student looking for the cheapest option to handle some homework and browsing, a Chromebook can be a solid choice. If you need a laptop for gaming, video editing or professional use, you may be better off spending a bit more to get a standard laptop. Be sure to read more about the differences between the Chromebooks and laptops before you commit to buying one.
When is Amazon October Prime Day 2024?
In 2024, Amazon's October Prime Day event, officially called Prime Big Deals Days, is often referred to as October Prime Day. It takes place on Oct. 8 and 9.
Are Prime Day deals just for Prime members?
Yes, Amazon's Prime Deal Days sale requires a Prime subscription if you want to nab any of the Prime-exclusive deals. You don't have to be a paying subscriber, as long as the event falls within your Prime trial period. That means you can start your monthlong trial just before the event and get in on the savings for free. For more info on that, check out our guide to getting Amazon Prime perks without paying for a subscription.
How does CNET select the best October Prime Day deals?
Our team of expert shoppers has spent years helping buyers understand which major sales and deals are legitimately good and which are more routine. That includes Black Friday, Prime Day, Memorial Day and countless other shopping events. We've gotten very good at weeding out scams and superficial deals on tech of every kind, so you see only the best offers on laptops, tablets and other devices.
At CNET we look for real discounts, quality reviews and remaining sale time when choosing a deal to show you.
- Real discounts mean exactly that. We look at the price history for that product to make sure no manufacturers are inflating prices to make the discount seem more substantial than it is.
- Quality reviews are important for any product, but especially for deeply discounted items. If you don't get enough mileage out of the device you're buying, the discount wasn't worthwhile.
- Remaining sale time is a huge part of our vetting process. If a deal is likely to be short-lived or limited to remaining stock, we'll let you know upfront -- so you're not disappointed if you check back later and find it's gone.