Annoyed by Apple price rises? Here's why picking up a 'pre-loved' iPad is a great deal

The recent Apple price hikes have affected several products, but iPads and MacBooks have been hit especially hard. Annoyingly, the price hikes hit just ahead of the traditional 'back-to-school' period, where many people are looking to buy tablets and laptops for the new semester.

If you're an Apple fan on a budget, however, don't fret. There are still plenty of options out there if you're not dead-set on getting the latest models brand new. For example, one of my favorite stores is BackMarket, which is a retailer that specialises in 'pre-loved' products.

You may have bought second-hand gear on auction sites before, but BackMarket is a different setup. For one, it has professionals check and refurbish all the products, and after that, you get a full year of warranty. That's something you simply don't get when you opt for a cheap listing on an auction site.

Despite that, BackMarket has good deals, too. Right now, you can get excellent tablets like the Apple iPad Pro M2 for $588 (was $999) or the Apple iPad Air M1 for $290 (was $599). These might not be the latest models anymore, but they're still great tablets that hold up extremely well in 2026.

Today's best iPad deals at BackMarket

Apple iPad Pro (2022, M2 series): was $999 now $588 at Back Market (US)

The iPad Pro from 2022 is an older device now, but it's still a fantastic tablet if you need something with plenty of power. The differences between this one and the latest model drill down to the chipset and display, mostly. It's a little slower than the newer model, but still wildly quick, and you get an LCD display rather than an OLED panel. Considering BackMarket's current price, this one is definitely a strong choice for students.

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Apple iPad Air 5 (2022, M1 series): was $599 now $290 at Back Market (US)

The iPad Air 5 rocks the legendary M1 chipset — a much older processor now, but one that massively surprised us when it first debuted. It's a chipset that's still very capable for the wide majority of tasks and provides good battery life, too. While the Air isn't as powerful as the Pro, it's a good mid-tier option between the cheap-and-cheerful standard iPad and the higher-end models. It's lightweight, powerful, and features a great display.

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Is an older iPad worth it in 2026?

It really depends on your use case, but most iPads from the past couple of years are still excellent tablets. Apple has improved them over various generations, but the upgrades may not matter that much to you if you're more concerned about value.

For example, the latest iPad Pro features an OLED display and an M5 chipset. On paper, these are really big upgrades, but the older 2022 model is certainly no slouch. Its LCD screen is still 120Hz refresh rate, for example, and the M2 chipset inside is still a very powerful processor that's been used in MacBooks. It's still arguably overkill for basic tasks like streaming content, note-taking, or browsing the web.