Apple’s new 15-inch MacBook Air is already $65 off at Amazon - The Verge

Apple’s new 15-inch MacBook Air is already $65 off at Amazon

Apple’s new 15-inch MacBook Air is already $65 off at Amazon

Apple’s new 15-inch MacBook Air is already $65 off at Amazon

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The M2 machine is a lot like last year’s MacBook Air but with a bigger screen and an improved six-speaker sound system.

By Brandon Widder , a senior editor overseeing deals, gift guides, and commerce. He spent six years spearheading buying guides and consumer tech coverage at Digital Trends.

Jun 14, 2023, 5:56 PM UTC |

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Who doesn’t love an extra two inches of real estate?

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

After what feels like years of “will they / won’t they” speculation, Apple’s long-awaited 15-inch MacBook Air has officially arrived. However, despite having just recently launched, Amazon is already dropping the price of the base model with 8GB of memory, 256GB of storage, an eight-core CPU, and a 10-core GPU to $1,234 in select colors — a $65 discount that beats the preorder price we saw leading up to the laptop’s release earlier this week.

As expected, there isn’t a whole lot that separates Apple’s new 15-incher from the 13-inch M2 model Apple released last year. My colleague Monica Chin put the M2 laptop through its paces over the weekend, and lo and behold, it offers few surprises aside from the extra two inches of screen real estate and a far better speaker array. At 3.3 pounds, it’s a bit heavier than the redesigned 13-inch model, but it offers the same outstanding battery life, a terrific keyboard, and more than enough processing power for the average user to inundate themselves with work docs and burn through the first two seasons of The Witcher before the third hits next month (sigh, RIP to Henry Cavill’s Geralt).

Apple’s latest MacBook Air sports a 15-inch display and is equipped with Apple’s M2 chip. The base model starts with 8GB of RAM and 256B of storage, though you can also buy it with as much as 24GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.

If you’re a macOS Ventura user who doesn’t want to shell out north of $1,000 on a new laptop but could use a better webcam to replace your laptop’s shoddy 720p camera — yes, I’m looking at you, M1 MacBook Air users — there’s the Belkin iPhone Mount with MagSafe for Mac Notebooks. Normally $29.99, it’s currently on sale at Amazon in white for $23.29, which marks its first discount to date.

Terrible name aside, Belkin’s Continuity Camera mount is a pretty handy tool that lets you use the phone you already own to take video calls on your Mac. The simple, well-built device works with any MagSafe-equipped iPhone and most Apple laptops, including both MacBook Air and Pro models dating as far back as 2018 and makes use of Apple’s new Continuity Camera feature. You can rest it on your laptop in either portrait or landscape modes, and once set up, the whole thing is pretty effortless to use. The built-in hook even doubles as a kickstand, just in case you want to prop your phone up on the go.

Belkin’s laptop-friendly Continuity Camera mount offers great build quality, a built-in kickstand, and — most importantly — an easy way to use your MagSafe-equipped iPhone as a webcam.

We wrote yesterday about how both Target and Amazon are offering mix-and-match buy two, get one free deals on select video games, tabletop games, and other items. On top of that, however, it appears Nintendo is running a so-called “Hyper Max Sale” through June 25th that drops the price of select digital games, some of which rarely see discounts. There’s quite a bit on offer, but one of the most notable titles is Metroid Dread, which is currently matching its all-time low of $41.99 ($18 off) at Amazon, Best Buy, and the My Nintendo Store.

The moody, atmospheric sidescroller was arguably one of the best Nintendo Switch games of 2021 despite being overshadowed by the likes of Hades and Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury — two titles that have nothing on Dread’s frantic boss battles, classic progression system, and expansive arsenal of sci-fi weaponry.

Metroid Dread is the fifth mainline entry in Nintendo’s storied franchise. The 2D sidescroller is a direct sequel to Metroid Fusion, a Game Boy Advance title from 2002.

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A few additional midweek discounts

• Skullcandy’s Dime 2 earbuds are on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target for $22.99 ($7 off), nearly matching their best price to date. They lack more premium features like noise cancellation and multipoint connectivity, yet they still manage to deliver respectable sound quality and a healthy mix of features (including 3.5 hours of playback per charge and Tile integration) at a price that was pretty much unfathomable just a couple of years ago.
• Anker’s 313 Wireless Charger is on sale at Amazon and Walmart right now for $15.99 ($4 off), nearly matching its all-time low. While slower than a lot of other Qi wireless chargers — it tops out at 10W charging speeds with Samsung Galaxy devices — it’s still an inexpensive, reliable option if you’re someone who typically charges their phone overnight.
• The Google Pixel Watch, our favorite “Fitbit” fitness tracker, is once again available at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target in the Wi-Fi-only configuration starting at just $299.99 ($50 off). If you’re not sold on the watch’s sleek design or reliable performance, Google recently announced that it’s rolling out a slate of new features to its first-gen wearable, including blood oxygen tracking and a new auto-pause feature for workouts. Read our review.
• It’s not a deal, per se, but Asus’ ROG Ally is now available at Best Buy for $699.99. Our own Sean Hollister recently gave his original review a refresh in light of some of the recent changes Asus made to the Windows handheld, which, despite still struggling with battery life, remains a powerful gaming machine when paired with a mouse, keyboard, and — yes — a power outlet.

Update June 14th 2:55PM ET: Amazon is now offering an additional $15 off Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Air. We’ve adjusted the price accordingly in both the body copy and headline.

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The Witcher season 3’s new trailer has portals, parties, and plenty of bloodshed

The Witcher season 3’s new trailer has portals, parties, and plenty of bloodshed

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The final season with Henry Cavill starts streaming on Netflix later this month.

By Andrew Webster , an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.

Jun 8, 2023, 7:30 PM UTC |

Despite the name, Summer Game Fest isn’t entirely about games — case in point, we got a brand-new trailer for The Witcher’s third season. The clip shows off just about everything the series is known for: bloody battles, terrifying monsters, fiery magic, and Geralt looking very awkward at a social affair. And, of course, he spends lots of time talking about how neutral he is.

Season 3 of The Witcher starts streaming on Netflix on June 29th — or at least, some of it does. Just like Stranger Things before it, the latest season of the fantasy show will be split into two parts. Volume one will debut in June, while the second volume will premiere in July.

Netflix has steadily been expanding its Witcher universe since the first season debuted in 2019. We’ve had a second season, an animated film, a live-action prequel series starring Michelle Yeoh, and now, a third season so big it’s being split in half. And while star Henry Cavill will be replaced by Liam Hemsworth starting with season 4, it doesn’t appear the franchise will slow down one bit — it’s already been renewed for season 5.

Meanwhile, the Witcher games have cemented their place as some of the bestsellers in the medium.

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