The new iPad Air falls to its lowest price ever for Prime Day – but it won't be around for long

Like Christmas in July, Amazon is slashing prices on its bestselling tech for its biannual Prime Day. The mega-sale is about to end tonight, so you've only got a little time left to score one of the best tablet deals I've seen. It's the Apple iPad Air 11-inch (M3) at Amazon for a record-low price of $479 (was $599).

The iPad Air 2025 replaces the M2 chip in last year's models with the more powerful M3 chip, previously only used in the iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro. All colors are on sale, including the new spring-hued Blue and Purple. You get 128GB of storage for the advertised $479, but you can pay up to $979 for 1TB if you need more space.

Overall, 128GB is the most cost-effective storage option because the discount caps at $120. That's plenty for most people, unless you're an app hoarder or mobile gamer.

Today's best iPad Air deal

Apple iPad Air 11-inch (M3): was $599 now $479 at Amazon

The iPad Air 2025 upgrades last year's model with the superior M3 chip, which speeds up performance but largely keeps everything the same. It was already a respectable deal for the same price as the iPad Air M2, but it's even more so at its new lowest price of $479 for 128GB of storage. That should be enough for most people, unless you plan on managing large files, hoarding applications, or playing many mobile games. You can expect up to 10 hours of screentime with general use and less than that with demanding tasks like gaming.

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The iPad Air M3 is currently our best iPad for students. The 11-inch model is cheaper and more compact, and it performs just as well as the larger 13-inch version. In our review for the 11-inch iPad Air (2025), we found speedier performance with the upgrade from the M2 chip to M3, but the design remains mostly unchanged from the already excellent iPad Air M2 (2024).

The iPad Air M3 can manage a full day of use without charging in between. As per our testing, this can translate to about 10 hours of general use, such as watching videos and web surfing at 70% brightness. Our reviewer also used the iPad Air M3 with a Magic Keyboard, which didn't seem to significantly subtract from its battery life. On the other hand, demanding tasks like photo and video editing or playing games drain the battery much faster.

In short, the 11-inch iPad Air M3 is a little powerhouse that seamlessly runs applications and offers plenty of battery life. It's pricier than the standard iPad, but worth it for anyone planning to use it as a workstation or gaming hub. Even though we recommend the standard iPad for most people, it's not as strong as Apple's pricier devices (like the iPad Air M3) and doesn't support Apple Intelligence.

For more, browse the best iPads and learn how to choose which one is best for you. I'd also recommend comparing the 2025 Pad Air vs 2024 iPad Pro.