Following the introduction of the new entry-level iPad and iPad Pro models, which will be released on October 18, markets outside the US saw the price of existing iPad mini models rise significantly on Apple’s website.
In the UK Mini iPad 64 GB is currently priced at £ 569, up from £ 479, while the 256GB model now costs £ 749 from £ 619. Overall, this is an increase of 19-21%, which is not a small amount. Similar price increases can be observed in the EU market, and Apple has not yet given a clear reason.
Raising the prices of existing iPad models to make newer versions appear more budget-friendly is bad news for non-US consumers, and generally not very consumer-friendly. The same thing happened not so long ago with iPhone SE when the iPhone 14 was released, albeit on a smaller scale compared.
There seems to be a pattern here with Apple dropping new products on us with increasingly heavier price tags. In our review this year M2 MacBook Airwe saw a surprising new asking price of the MacBook Air compared to the MacBook Air M1 when it was introduced to the market in 2020. It will be interesting to see if this trend continues in new launches and products in the future, and if we should get used to the fear of a new product collapsing with the suspicion that its predecessors will become more expensive.
A terrifying thought sneaks in and we have to wonder: will MacBooks and iPads continue to rise from now on, and by how much each time? As rumors are circulating that we might get a new MacBook fleet any day, this costly consequence does not bode well for those of us looking to buy a new MacBook any time soon.
Analysis: If you want a cheap Apple device, wait until Black Friday
If MacBooks do get more expensive – does it make sense to buy one now? With Black Friday approaching, there is a good chance that prices for existing MacBooks will drop. Cheap MacBooks are a relative thing – in the best of times they aren’t cheap laptops – but now more than ever the best MacBook for you for a less painful price.
In fact, if Apple does announce new laptops, it could be a sequel 14-inch MacBook Pro and 16-inch MacBook ProBlack Friday can be a great time to get your hands on the older models as retailers clear their stocks before newer versions go on sale.
Buying a new MacBook or other big tech purchase this close to Black Friday is risky because you don’t want to risk buying something that ends up with a price cut a few weeks later. We have a feeling there will be plenty of them Black Friday Deals for MacBook later this year – so the more expensive iPads may not be the horrible news you’d expect.