Is the entire online marketplace in cahoots with Apple, or did a bunch of the best Windows laptop deals just end before Apple unveiled its affordable MacBook Neo? It's the latter, and there are actually a bunch of good reasons for it — but it's fun to joke.
When Apple announced the MacBook Neo, Windows Central Slack shifted into gear to respond to the news. Our Senior Editor Zac Bowden argued that Microsoft should be panicking. In contrast, Ben Wilson said the specs of the MacBook Neo evaporated his interest in macOS.
Years ago, buying a Windows laptop for under $600 meant seriously sacrificing quality, specs, or both. But if you know where — and when — to shop, you can get a great PC for that price.
But a strange trend emerged while researching for this piece. Many Windows laptop sales stopped recently, meaning some top contenders cannot compete with the MacBook Neo right now.
So, is Apple controlling the stores and making Best Buy and Amazon kill deals on Windows laptops?! Almost certainly not. The reality is that we just had Presidents' Day, and right now is a relatively dead period for deals.
Still, I think retailers missed a chance to sell Windows PCs at an affordable price alongside the MacBook Neo.
Our team of experts hunts for Windows laptop deals. It's not rare to find a great portable PC for under $600. If you expand the range to $699.99 — the cost of the MacBook Neo with 512GB of storage and TouchID — you normally have a bunch of options on the Windows side of things.
While there are some Windows laptop deals that bring prices to or around $600, quite a few discounts ended recently.
The ASUS Zenbook A14, which has been discounted to below $600 as recently as mid-January, currently sits at $739 or even $829.99, depending on which retailer you look at.
An excellent deal on the Lenovo Yoga 7 2-in-1 that slashed the price of the laptop to $599 just ended. That model came with 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and a 2K OLED display for goodness sake.
For what it's worth, the larger Yoga 7 2-in-1 16" is on sale for $649.99 right now.
Dell's website says the Dell 14 Plus Laptop is on sale for $649 right now, but if you click to configure the PC, the most affordable option is actually $749.
Even Microsoft missed an opportunity to undercut Apple. The Surface Laptop 13-inch has sold for as low as $549 in the past, and is now listed for a whopping $899.99 at Best Buy.
I understand why there's a lull in sales right now. A bunch of deal "holidays" just wrapped up. Retailers yo-yo prices up and down to make discounts more attractive when they do arrive. I wouldn't be surprised to see some of the PCs listed above for under $600 in the near future.
If you are on the hunt for a Windows laptop at a good price, HP seemingly missed the memo about it being a dead period for deals. The HP OmniBook 5 is on sale for $499.99. That's one of the best Windows laptops and delivers excellent value.
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