We have now moved on to day 3 of the ongoing Amazon Big Spring Sale, and while the M4 Pro Mac mini is still at its best price ever, Amazon has now brought back all-time pricing on the most affordable model down at $499 shipped – this deal might not last for long though. From there, we move over to a new all-time low on M3 iPad Air configurations with prices kicking off at $549 and the first post-launch deal on ESR’s latest Geo iPad Pencil with Find My – it is now over $100 under the price of Apple Pencil Pro – alongside a launch deal on Journey’s all-new steel Apple Find My water bottle with wireless charging and a built-in MagSafe stand. All of that and more awaits below in today’s 9to5Toys Lunch Break.
Apple’s most affordable 16GB M4 Mac mini just dropped back to the $499 Amazon all-time low ($100 off)
It came and went quite quickly over this past weekend, but Amazon has now brought back its all-time low pricing on the base model M4 Mac mini at $499 shipped. Now joining the all-time low pricing on the upgraded M4 Pro Mac mini at $200 off the list price, Amazon is now once again offering a straight up $100 price drop on the base M4 model to a mark return of the lowest price we have tracked there.
We have seen this model with 16GB of RAM and the 256GB internal SSD down at $529 a number of times now, but a straight up $100 price drop has been much harder to come by since its official release last fall. We are, in fact, seeing $100 drops on all three of the stock M4 mini configurations at the moment, right up to the 24GB/512GB setup, alongside the aforementioned M4 Pro model with 24GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. Pricing breaks down as follows:
I am seriously considering the M4 Pro mini at this point, and especially with a $200 discount, but as we have discussed previously, the real selling point of the lineup for many is the ultra-affordable price tag (as far as current Apple standard go anyway) on the base models.
Most folks can probably make do just fine with the M4 chip and at $499, we are talking about the most affordable point of entry into the current-generation Mac lineup here. After Apple doubled down on its base model RAM game from the underwhelming 8GB up to 16GB last fall, these entry-level configurations have become even more enticing and you can now land one back down at the Amazon all-time low as part of the retailer’s ongoing Big Spring Sale.
Just be sure to scope out the Satechi M4 Mac mini Stand & Hub with SSD Enclosure to take the experience up a notch or four.
Apple’s most affordable new 13-inch M3 iPad Air just hit a new Amazon all-time low, more from $549
While we are still tracking all-time low prices on the most affordable new M3 iPad 11-inch models, Amazon is now offering a new all-time low on the base model 13-inch starting from $738.08 shipped. Regularly $799, this is the best straight up cash deal we have tracked on the most affordable 13-inch variant since release.
While today’s deal is only available on the 128GB Gray model, you will still find the $50 price drops live at Amazon across the entire lineup – every configuration of the new M3 iPad is still sitting at Amazon all-time lows right now, and that includes the Wi-Fi + Cell variants.
We will keep an eye out for other colors dipping down as well.
As we featured previously, there are still some serious chances to save a whole lot more right now, but you will need to have a previous-generation iPad to flip for the new M3 model that debuted last month. You can score one at up to $650 off with an M2 iPad Air trade-in and all of the details you need on that await right here.
That said, those without gear to flip towards to the new M3 can browse through the deal pricing across the lineup down below:
Apple iPad Air M3 11-inch
Apple iPad Air M3 13-inch
Head over to our launch coverage of the new M3 iPad Air for more details on it and the new Magic Keyboard.
ESR’s latest Geo iPad Pencil with Find My is more than $100 less than Apple Pencil Pro, now down at $25.50
As part of the now live Big Spring Sale, one of the official ESR storefronts on Amazon is now offering the first post-launch deal on its relatively new Geo iPad Pencil with built-in Apple Find My. Regularly $30, you can now score the white model down at $25.49 with free shipping for Prime members or in orders over $35. This is a straight up 15% price drop and the lowest we have tracked in months since the early launch offer.
The ESR Geo Digital Pencil, as it is officially known, is essentially a much more affordable Apple Pencil alternative. And, unlike most of the more affordable alternatives out there, it sports an official Apple Find My module on the inside, much like the regularly $129 Apple Pencil Pro that was revealed last May – Apple Pencil Pro is currently on sale for $99 as part of the Amazon Big Spring Sale.
While it’s clearly not as high-end a solution, at over $100 off the MSRP of an Apple Pencil Pro, it might be a worth while consideration for some, especially with the newfound Find My integration. There are some trade-offs, like wireless charging, but again, it’s dramatically less pricey too.
As for the actual digital writing and doodling experience, ESR says it offers a smooth writing experience with a built-in sensor that “allows you to adjust the thickness of your lines by tilting the nib” for ”realistic shading, detailed drawings, and writing just like on paper.”
It supports USB-C charging – full charged in 30 minutes, and will magnetically attach to iPads that support such a feature. And it, of course, also features onboard Find My that works very much like any other third-party integration – “Find My function allows you to locate your iPad Pencil anytime and anywhere, whether you’ve misplaced it while out or at home.”
Today’s accessories and charging deals:
Eve’s HomeKit Secure Video smart home cam hits one of its best prices at $115 (Nearly 25% off)
As part of the now live Big Spring Sale, and the ongoing Eve smart home sale, we are touching down today to highlight a notable deal on one of our favorite HomeKit smart home cameras – the Eve Cam. Regularly $150, and rarely on sale outside of holiday events, you can now score it at one of the best prices we have ever tracked with Amazon’s listing now sitting down at $114.95 shipped, or nearly 25% off.
While the Eve Cam isn’t the newest HomeKit camera on the market, or the most affordable, after our follow up review at around this time last year over at 9to5Mac, we can confidently say it remains one of our favorites:
Last week, I looked at the state of HomeKit Secure Video. While I agree that it will take a lot of work to meet users’ needs in 2024, I also agree that it’s still the best way for privacy-focused people to use smart home cameras. The Eve Cam is one of the best cameras on the market for HomeKit Secure video.
The Eve Cam, which is now undercutting last year’s Black Friday price, delivers HomeKit Secure Video support – we said “Eve is a vendor as close to Apple releasing first-party HomeKit products as will come.”
It delivers the obligatory 1080p fees to your smart devices from its sleek black frame alongside the suite of notifications and motion alerts one would expect from a camera in this now discounted price range – it is capable of distinguishing between people and pets as well.
Be sure to dive into the wider Eve Big Spring smart home sale where you’ll find the brand’s plugs, outlets, switches, and more starting from $30 right now.
Apple’s iPad mini 7 now $100 off for Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, deals from $399
The new iPad (A16) is now out in the wild (and is now marked down at Amazon) alongside the upgraded M3 iPad Air (still seeing its first cash deals right here), but Amazon also just brought back the $100 price drops on Apple’s latest, greatest, and miniest iPad. You’ll now find just about every iPad mini 7 configuration on sale via Amazon at $100 off the going rates with prices kicking off from $399 shipped. Head below for a closer look.
Amazon has the 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB models down at $399, $499, and $699 shipped, respectively. That’s a straight up $100 off the regular listings, matching our previous mention, and on par with the lowest prices we have tracked to date.
Apple’s latest iPad mini 7, or more officially the iPad mini (A17 Pro) is the most affordable model in the lineup that can run Apple Intelligence. The aforementioned iPad (A16) is, of course, the least pricey model in the lineup overall – it currently starts down at $329 on Amazon – but it is not compatible with Apple Intelligence.
The iPad mini 7 landed on store shelves in late 2024 with the same compact 8.3-inch display as the previous model alongside a 30% jump in CPU power, 25% better graphics performance, and upgraded storage capacity – Apple finally rid the 64GB models from the lineup. Our iPad mini 7 vs 6 comparison feature piece provides a detailed rundown of everything new this time around.
Here are our favorite iPad mini 7 cases and sleeves from $8.50.
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