Apple today began selling refurbished 2018 models of the MacBook Air and Mac mini for the first time, although availability is currently limited to Europe. Listings for refurbished 2018 MacBook Air models have also gone live in the United States, but the purchase button does not work yet.
In the UK, the base model MacBook Air is priced at £1,019, which is £180 off Apple's regular price of £1,199 brand new. The base model Mac mini is priced at £679, reflecting savings of £120 off £799 brand new.
The refurbished MacBook Air models will start at $1,019 in the United States when they become available to order. That is a discount worth passing over, as authorized resellers such as Amazon and B&H are currently offering the 2018 MacBook Air brand new in box for $999, a savings of $200:
- Amazon: 1.6GHz Core i5 / 128GB SSD / 8GB RAM / Space Gray
- Amazon: 1.6GHz Core i5 / 128GB SSD / 8GB RAM / Silver
- B&H: 1.6GHz Core i5 / 128GB SSD / 8GB RAM / Space Gray
- B&H: 1.6GHz Core i5 / 128GB SSD / 8GB RAM / Silver
Mac mini deals are less common, so refurbished models could be worth considering. Orders placed today are estimated for delivery by early next week in the United Kingdom. We recommend using Refurb Tracker to monitor inventory.
Apple says certified refurbished MacBook Air and Mac mini models are thoroughly inspected, tested, cleaned, and repackaged, with all manuals and cables included in the box. In our view, a refurbished Mac is virtually indistinguishable from a brand new one, and is also backed by Apple's standard one-year warranty.
A refurbished Mac's warranty can be extended to three years from the refurbished purchase date with AppleCare+.
Update: Refurbished 2018 MacBook Air and Mac mini models are also available in other European countries such as Spain, France, Germany, Ireland, Belgium, and Italy. Thanks to Jean-Baptiste from iPhoneAddict.
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