Apple released the latest refreshes to its MacBook Pro laptops just last month, but a new deal has brought the 14-inch model down to $1,799 at Amazon and B&H. That’s $150 off this configuration’s typical going rate on Amazon, $200 off Apple’s MSRP and the largest discount we’ve seen to date. B&H’s listing says the deal is only scheduled to last through Tuesday. Note that only the Space Gray model is discounted.
This deal applies to the entry-level 14-inch model, which includes a new M2 Pro chip with a 10-core CPU and 16-core GPU, 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage. The 14.2-inch Mini-LED display has a resolution of 3,024 x 1,964 and supports refresh rates up to 120Hz for smoother scrolling. There’s a 1080p webcam inside an iPhone-style display notch, plus three Thunderbolt 4 USB-C ports, an HDMI 2.1 port, a full-sized SD card slot, a MagSafe connector for charging and a headphone jack.
We gave the latest 14-inch MacBook Pro a review score of 92 back in January. Although that review was based on a higher-power configuration than this discounted model, the general benefits are the same here. The new MacBook Pro is essentially just a speed bump, but it remains a fast and sturdily-built notebook for power users. Its display is still superb, its keyboard and trackpad are still comfortable, its speakers are still top-notch and its battery life can still genuinely last beyond a full work day. On the flip side, the whole thing is still expensive (even with this discount) and hardly upgradeable, but that’s a familiar story for Macs. This entry-level model also comes with a 67W charger, while the more expensive configurations include a faster 96W adapter in the box.
The one major upgrade here is the new chip. To be clear, this variant of the M2 Pro isn’t worth the upgrade for most owners of the prior MacBook Pro, and its graphics performance is still clearly behind the M2 Max chip available in the pricier Pro models. Because of the way its NAND chips are configured, this entry-level model’s storage performance is technically slower than the last entry-level 14-inch Pro as well.
That said, this is still a powerful notebook. Any storage drop-off isn’t likely to be noticeable the vast majority of the time, and the CPU and GPU performance here is still a nice jump for most looking to upgrade from an older Intel-based Pro. While the M2 MacBook Air is the better buy for most people in need of a general-purpose laptop, the 14-inch MacBook Pro is a great choice for those willing to pay for more performance, and this deal makes it at least a little more affordable.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-2023-macbook-pro-with-m2-pro-is-200-off-right-now-164333083.html?src=rss