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5 Apple deals you can’t afford to miss today

Finding Apple deals isn’t as hard as it used to be. We typically find the best ones on major online retail sites like Amazon, Best Buy, and Verizon. Below are some of the biggest discounts we’ve seen yet on the Apple Watch Series 3, HomePod, Airpods Pro, iPad 10.2, and MacBook Air. Enjoy up to $100 worth of savings if you get them today.

Apple Watch Series 3 – $169, was $199

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The Apple Watch Series 3 used to be the best smartwatch that you could buy (that honor has now been bestowed upon the Series 5), with an interface that easily eclipses Android Wear and a design that’s a huge hit among consumers. It also functions phenomenally as a fitness tracker and, thanks to a new dual-core processor, it has become faster than ever. And since it’s no longer the latest model, it’s not hard to find the Series 3 with massive price cuts on several online retail sites. Right now, you can get it at Amazon starting from $169 instead of the usual $199.

Syncing the Apple Watch Series 3 to your iPhone via Bluetooth allows you to receive real-time notifications and music playback control. You can get notified of calls, text messages, and social media alerts even if your phone is tucked away in your bag. This smartwatch doesn’t have a built-in eSim card, though, so you cannot make phone calls on your wrist. For that, you need to spend a few extra bucks and get the cellular version. The Series 3 is a very reliable fitness tracker. It boasts a gamut of health-centric sensors, including a heart rate monitor, accelerometer, and gyroscope. With this watch, you can track a multitude of activities, including walking, running, swimming, and cycling. When you’ve been sitting for too long, this watch will remind you to get off your feet and take a brief walk. It also helps you relieve pent-up stress through the Breathe feature. All health stats and metrics are aggregated in the Activity app. Even though it’s not the latest or the most feature-packed Apple Watch, the Series 3 is still great value for money.

Apple HomePod — $200, was $300

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The HomePod continues Apple’s legacy of keeping it simple yet stylish. This smart speaker is not only wonderfully minimalist but it is also built like a tank. At 5.5 pounds, it has real heft, and that’s because of robust cabinetry and huge magnets on the internal drivers, which produce out-of-this-world bass. The HomePod is very simple to set up, but here’s the catch: You must have an iOS device that’s capable of running iOS 11.2.5, otherwise you won’t be able to use it. The most primitive Apple devices that it will work on are the iPhone 5S, iPad Mini 2, and iPod Touch sixth generation. There is also a tragic lack of a Bluetooth connection and auxiliary input jack to connect non-Apple devices. Despite the drawbacks, here’s where the HomePod really aces it: Sound quality. With a large cavity that houses a 4-inch woofer and seven tweeters surrounding the speaker (each coming with its own high-powered amplifier), the HomePod is the audiophile’s smart speaker. Every music genre that we played on it sounded lush and rich in details, perfectly complemented by a full-bodied bass that means business. The HomePod is made exclusive for the Apple faithful. It normally retails for $300, but right now you can get it at Best Buy for a whopping $100 off.

AirPods Pro – $220, was $250

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We weren’t entirely impressed with the standard AirPods, so when Apple announced it was going to release the souped-up AirPod Pro, we were a little skeptical. Would the company be able to deliver this time and improve on all the areas that the AirPods failed? The answer is a resounding yes. The AirPods Pro are shockingly good and are absolutely the best true wireless earbuds that you can get if you’re an iOS user. Their sound quality has improved tremendously, their noise-canceling is spectacular, and they’re extremely comfortable to use even for a long period. Right now, you can score the AirPods Pro at Verizon for $220 instead of $250.

Unlike the Airpods, the AirPods Pro come with three sets of silicone eartips that snap on with a satisfying click instead of sliding onto a little nubbin as so many other in-ear buds require. This change not only offers a more secure and comfortable fit but also contributes to better bass response. The AirPods Pro inherit the original AirPods’ controls which means they’re easy to operate and, as expected, Siri is always listening and ready to obey your every command. As with most true wireless buds with active noise-canceling, you have the option to either shut the noise out or let some of it in. Apple calls the latter feature Transparency Mode, and activating this allows sounds from the outside world to arrive in a very natural way, almost as if you’ve taken the buds themselves out. Noise-canceling is decidedly top-notch and almost on par with what over-ear ANC headphones offer. Last but certainly not least, the AirPods Pro deliver a pretty impressive sonic performance. Their sound signature is terrific, rich in subtle details with some zesty treble, rounded-up by a full-bodied bass. Get them for $220 at Verizon today.

iPad 10.2 – $310, was $329

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Why get an iPad, particularly the iPad 10.2, when you can get a laptop? For starters, tablets in general are way more portable. Without a physical keyboard (which of course, has been transferred to the screen), it’s easier to lug an iPad around. Plus, thanks to its A10 Fusion processor, it is more powerful than ever, more than capable of handling simple everyday tasks like surfing the internet, emailing, and document writing. Multitasking with several apps open won’t be an issue either, and navigating the new iPadOS is buttery smooth. You even have the ability to use multiple apps in the Slide Over menu, a revamped home screen layout that includes the Today View widgets, desktop-grade Safari, and multi-window apps. You can now also use Split View on the same app, like having two Google Docs open side by side.

If you feel like you can’t do without a physical keyboard, you can always purchase Apple’s Smart Keyboard to really maximize the iPad’s functionality. It’s also worth mentioning that this tablet now boasts a bigger 10.2-inch screen compared to the previous model’s 9.7-inch display. The LCD panel’s pixel density is the same at 264 pixels per inch, and it looks sharp and is colorful and very bright. And thankfully the headphone jack has not been removed, unlike the iPad Pro. You don’t have to go hunting for a 3.5mm-to-Lightning jack once your Bluetooth headphones lose power. Instead of Face ID, which remains exclusive to the iPad Pro and the latest iPhones, you get Touch ID for security. Probably its biggest draw is that it’s the most affordable iPad in Apple’s current lineup. With a powerful processor, a fantastic operating system, and a large and gorgeous display, the iPad 10.2 is indisputably the best tablet that you can buy on a limited budget.

13.3-inch MacBook Air — $949, was $999

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If you’re determined to buy a MacBook but don’t want to shell out too much money, then the MacBook Air is for you. It’s a well-rounded portable laptop that boasts a solid performance and premium build quality. Now made thinner and lighter thanks to its eco-friendly aluminum chassis, the MacBook Air still possesses the same power and solid build quality typical of Apple devices. Its 13.3-inch Retina display boasts Apple’s True Tone technology, which gives it the power to adapt to your environment’s ambient light to make images appear more natural, with accurate colors that aren’t oversaturated. Working alongside an Intel i3 processor, this MacBook Air has 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal memory. It proved speedy and performed well when tasked with normal daily workflow, like streaming videos, working in Photoshop, word processing, and web browsing. The 13.3-inch MacBook Air normally retails for $999, but right now you can purchase it on Amazon for $949 — a cool $50 off.

Editors' Recommendations

Timothy Taylor
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Timothy is a deals writer for Digital Trends that specializes in finding the best discounts on smartphones, wireless…
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