Huge Apple Back to School sale launches with $150 gift cards - 7 deals I'd buy today

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2): starting at $899, plus $150 gift card at Apple
A great option for the student who needs a relatively powerful laptop for all the basics, the MacBook Air M2 is currently up for grabs with a $150 gift card at Apple. While this model has been superseded by the M3 iteration (see below), we still rate it highly. In fact, at the time of its release in 2022, our MacBook Air M2 review concluded that this was the best laptop for most people thanks to its stylish design, clear display, impressive performance, and long battery life. For those needing a premium laptop for creative apps such as photo editing, video editing, and even relatively intensive workloads, this is a great starting point. 

Apple MacBook Air (M3): starting at $999, plus $150 gift card at Apple
The M3 model is the latest MacBook Air on the market currently and it's an incredible machine for students, teachers, and everyone in between. This model was released earlier this year and runs on the powerful M3 chipset, making it a great buy for creatives and anyone after a high-end device. Our five-star MacBook Air 13-inch M3 review praised its excellent performance, lengthy 18 hours of battery life and slick fan-less design. We think it's the best laptop you can buy right now if you've got a decent budget for a portable and powerful machine. We've seen this particular model go for as little as $899 on Amazon in recent weeks but today's Back to School promotion at Apple gets you a $150 gift card.

Apple MacBook Pro (M3 Pro): starting at $1,499, plus $150 gift card at Apple
Moving on to the incredible Pro models; you can currently pick up one of the latest M3 MacBook Pros with a superb $150 gift card. Even though these are pricey buys, you get plenty of power with up to a 14-core CPU, a 30-core GPU, and 32GB of RAM. It only has 512GB of SSD storage but it’s a workable amount for most people. Other than that, everything including the Liquid Retina display oozes quality so this is a great long-term investment if you need a high-end laptop.

Apple iPad Air (2024): starting at $549, plus $100 gift card at Apple
Apple's latest iPad Air was just released last month so it's great that it's included in the Apple Back to School event with a generous $100 gift card. This model comes with similar features as the last-gen iPad Air but upgrades the M1 chip to the M2 - the same processor that was in the 2022 MacBook Air. In short, you're getting incredible power and battery life with this slate but it does come at a relatively high premium. Not as high as the latest iPad Pro models, however.  

Apple iPad Pro (M4): starting at $899, plus $100 gift card at Apple
Speaking of which, if you want yourself a high-end slate, you'll be able to get yourself a $100 gift card with any of the latest M4 chipsets. For sure these are pricey tablets; at least $200 more than the base price for both previous-generation models, but you do get the brand-new M4 chip, high-quality tandem OLED display and twice as much storage (256GB) as standard. The cheapest this high-end slate has ever been is $945 at Amazon so today's Apple Back to School gift card is actually a very, very good deal on this popular model.

Apple iMac (M3): starting at $1,249, plus $150 gift card at Apple
The Apple iMac tends to get overlooked in favor of a MacBook but don't discount one if you're looking for a powerful machine for static work. Our Apple iMac 24-inch (M3) review ranks the latest model as the best all-in-one desktop you can buy right now - not least because of its powerful M3 chipset and 2,520p Retina Display. While it's obviously still a desktop, the iMac does feature an extremely thin and relatively lightweight design that makes it perfect for smaller desks.

Apple Mac mini (M2): starting at $499, plus $100 gift card at Apple
We love the Mac mini here at TechRadar - so much, in fact, that we awarded it a full five stars out of five in our Apple Mac mini (2023) review. Its combination of a minimalist, lightweight design, and powerful chipset make it a fantastic choice if you want a static desktop that can cover the basics. Of course, you don't get a display with the Mac mini but the baseline model starts at just $499, which is the cheapest way to get your hands on some Apple silicon by far. You'll also get a $100 gift card in today's Apple Back to School event, which is handy for picking up accessories.