Best Buy's 'Black Friday in July' sale ends in two days time — here are 8 incredible Apple deals you can nab before Prime Day

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Pre-Prime Day Apple savings.

Apple Watch Series 9 Review
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Road to Prime Day

Amazon Prime Day 2024

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Want to see the best deals before the sale? Here's all our Prime Day content:

- Prime Day Apple deals
- Prime Day iPhone deals
- Prime Day iPad deals
- Prime Day Mac deals
- Prime Day Apple Watch deals
- Prime Day AirPods deals
- Prime Day HomeKit deals

With only a day until Prime Day hits, you would have been forgiven for thinking that the deals around at most retailers would have dried up in anticipation of the massive price drops at Amazon — but you’d be mistaken. Instead, Best Buy has reduced the price of loads of Apple devices on its site, with massive savings on everything from Apple Watches to iPads and MacBooks.

If you’re looking for an alternative to Prime Day and Amazon, then these Apple deals are a massive boon as we head into one of online retail's busiest periods — although given that most of these deals are as good as Amazon (rather than better, unfortunately) you might risk buying something only to see it drop even further tomorrow. Alternatively, you’ll beat the rush, and make sure that what you’re looking for doesn’t go out of stock as everyone buys one on Prime Day! It’s all about perspective, right?

Massive Apple savings at Best Buy

iPad 9th gen | $329$249 at Best Buy

iPad 9th gen | $329 $249 at Best Buy

This is an iPad that you can’t even buy brand new at Amazon anymore, yet here at Best Buy you can get one with a monster $80 discount. It might not be the newest, but it's perfect for browsing the web and streaming some Apple TV Plus. You get 3 months of Apple's TV subscription service when you buy at Best Buy as well, which is a nice bonus.

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iPad Air M1 256GB | $749$499 at Best Buy

iPad Air M1 256GB | $749 $499 at Best Buy

That’s a wicked $250 saving on the last model of the iPad Air, and for all intents and purposes, it's not that much different from the brand-new model. The biggest difference is the M1 chip on the inside, and given that chip will support Apple Intelligence when it’s launched later this year, it’s still very much a powerful processor. This iPad has more storage than the base model, so you’ll be able to store more apps, photos, and games as well.

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iPad mini | $499$399 at Best Buy

iPad mini | $499 $399 at Best Buy

While this is the same price as Amazon, there are some goodies here to tempt you to Best Buy. You can get 3 free months of Apple TV Plus, for example, so you can watch all your favorite shows for nothing for a little while. This iPad mini deal is on all of the different color options as well, so it doesn’t matter what shade of iPad you want — you’ll still save loads of money.

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MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max | $3,499$2,999 at Best Buy

MacBook Pro 16-inch M3 Max | $3,499 $2,999 at Best Buy

How about $500 off the MacBook Pro 16-inch, with the range-topping M3 Max chip? That’s a proper portable powerhouse and one that comes with a price to match most of the time. While you could never call this deal price ‘cheap’, it’s still an absolutely massive saving on one of the best and most powerful MacBooks that Apple has ever released, with an earth-shattering chip, loads of RAM, and a large 1TB SSD.

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MacBook Air M2 | $999$799 at Best Buy

MacBook Air M2 | $999 $799 at Best Buy

This deal is the same as you’ll find on Amazon, but that doesn’t make it any less worth picking up. That’s an M2-powered MacBook Air with $200 off for an impressive saving on one of Apple’s most portable laptops — and considering you’ll also get $50 extra off with my Best Buy Plus, you might be better off buying here than at Amazon for the time being.

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Apple Watch Series 9 | $429$329 at Best Buy

Apple Watch Series 9 | $429 $329 at Best Buy

$100 off a Series 9 is nothing to turn your nose up at, and it matches the price you’ll find at Amazon. This is the GPS version, so you’ll have to take your iPhone with you when you head out of the house. This particular link will take you to the 45mm case size, but there is also $100 off the smaller version if you want something daintier for smaller wrists. Or if you like smaller watches. Or spending less money.

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Apple Watch SE | $249$199 at Best Buy

Apple Watch SE | $249 $199 at Best Buy

You can currently get this Watch cheaper at Amazon by $10, but there’s an extra bonus here at Best Buy — 4 months of free Apple Fitness Plus. That’s worth a lot more than $10, and a very useful addition to any Apple Watch purchase. This deal is on all of the colors of Apple Watch SE, so you won’t have to lump it with a color you don’t really like (or indeed want).

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Apple Watch Ultra 2 | $799$729 at Best Buy

Apple Watch Ultra 2 | $799 $729 at Best Buy

This is actually the best price the Apple Watch Ultra 2 has been no matter where you go, and while a $70 saving might not seem like the best, it’s still a tasty discount on Apple’s most desirable Apple Watch. There’s only one size and connection option here of course — cellular and ‘big’, so the only option you have is the strap type and color. Make sure you have a click about there to find the one you really want — some are reduced more than others.

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Should I wait until Prime Day before taking the plunge?

So that’s a question that’s harder to answer than you think because there are a range of different variables. For example, do you want to get the absolute lowest price possible? If that’s the case, then you’re better off waiting until the sale starts tomorrow to see if those prices drop even more.

If you’re worried about stock levels, however, then you’ll most likely want to grab one of these deals before the Prime Day rush starts. When the prices drop on Amazon, all hell will break loose as other buyers frantically move to buy the Apple devices that they’ve been looking for all year — and stock on the most reduced tends to fall precipitously.

There’s another thing to bear in mind as well — Best Buy often has some extras, as we see with some of the deals above. That could be a few free months of Apple TV Plus or a lengthy four-month free trial of Apple Fitness Plus. Those are sometimes worth the price difference, and if you were going to get them anyway, then it makes it easier to justify shopping outside of the Prime Day sale.

Either way, the prices could change over Prime Day, and while buying now would risk you not saving as much, you would guarantee that you’ll get one — and net some tasty bonuses while you’re at it.'

Tammy Rogers
Tammy Rogers
Senior Staff Writer

As iMore's Senior Staff writer, Tammy uses her background in audio and Masters in screenwriting to pen engaging product reviews and informative buying guides. The resident audiophile (or audio weirdo), she's got an eye for detail and a love of top-quality sound. Apple is her bread and butter, with attention on HomeKit and Apple iPhone and Mac hardware. You won't find her far away from a keyboard even outside of working at iMore – in her spare time, she spends her free time writing feature-length and TV screenplays. Also known to enjoy driving digital cars around virtual circuits, to varying degrees of success. Just don't ask her about AirPods Max - you probably won't like her answer.