Technologies

Best MacBook Deals: Save $100 on M2 MacBook Air, $150 on M2 MacBook Pro and More

Apple’s new M2-based MacBooks are on sale, and bigger discounts are available on the larger MacBook Pro models.

This story is part of Gift Guide, our year-round collection of the best gift ideas.

Apple unveiled MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro models based on its new M2 chip earlier this year. The updated MacBook Air is bigger than the previous model, and a bit faster as well. Along with a bigger 13.6-inch display and M2 processor, however, comes a higher price. Gone is the $999 starting price; the new M2 MacBook Air line starts at $1,199. The updated 13-inch MacBook Pro with the M2 chip starts at the same $1,299 list price as the previous generation.

With holiday shopping season here, we are seeing some big MacBook discounts. While the price breaks aren’t as hefty as we saw for Black Friday and Cyber Monday, they are still sizable — prices have crept up about $50 since last week. Per usual, Amazon has the best prices for most MacBooks, but don’t overlook the sale prices at B&H. You can save $100 on the M2 MacBook Air at Amazon and $150 on the M2 MacBook Pro at B&H right now.

If you’re sad to see the Air’s $999 starting price disappear (we are; sniff), you can get the previous-generation MacBook Air with the M1 chip and 13.3-inch display for $800 at Amazon — a savings of $199. The 14-inch MacBook Pro and its larger 16-inch Pro sibling, both based on Apple’s M1 Pro chip, are the company’s biggest and most powerful MacBooks. You can save $200 on the 14-inch Prop and $300 on the 16-inch Pro.

US pricing for Apple MacBooks

While Amazon and B&H have the best prices at the moment, one benefit to paying full price and buying from Apple is that you can customize the machine and add more RAM or a higher-capacity solid-state drive. The models sold by Amazon and other retailers are fixed configurations.

Want to go the refurbished route? You can find refurbished M1 MacBooks on Apple’s Certified Refurbished Mac page. Refurb inventory changes rapidly so you may not always see an M1 MacBook Air or Pro listed. It’s worth keeping an eye out, however, because you can lock in substantial savings, up to $200. Rick Broida, CNET’s Cheapskate emeritus, is a big fan of refurbs, particularly Apple’s — which are often as good as new.

It’s also worth noting that the Apple Store offers students an educational discount, which can trim hundreds of dollars from the price of a new laptop or tablet.

Keep reading to see the best MacBook laptop deals currently available for Apple’s current and previous-generation MacBooks. We update this list periodically.

*Note that «all-time» means the best price that we’ve seen at an Apple-authorized retailer in the product’s lifetime. Prices change frequently and may differ between color variants.

Best MacBook deals

Technologies

China Cracks Down: Fake Experts Banned From Social Media

China is going all-in with strict social media policies surrounding educational topics.

Misinformation is tough to decipher in this day and age of social media. Over in China, the internet regulator has announced that it is further enforcing laws prohibiting social-media influencers from sharing advice on finance, medicine, law and education on social media unless they have the professional credentials to back up their content.

China’s social media platforms, such as Bilibili, Doyin (China’s TikTok) and Weibo, must follow the new regulations set down by the Cyberspace Administration of China on Saturday.

Creators will have to share studies to support their information and reveal whether they used AI to generate any of their content.

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CAC is also banning advertising for supplements and medical services, and similar posts that pose as educational content to sell a product. Prior to this regulation, China declared a two-month campaign to eliminate pessimistic, hostile or violent content.

China has been criticized for its attempt to control online content and public opinion. But it wouldn’t be the first country to enforce laws surrounding social media policies.

Spain implemented its own influencer law in 2024, which required influencers on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok earning over 300,000 euro to be transparent about partnerships with brands and sponsorships. Influencers must also adhere to copyright laws and restrictions on targeting of minors with content related to tobacco, alcohol and medications.

A study conducted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization found that only 36.9% of influencers verify that the content that they share is true before posting.

That’s especially troubling since a 2025 Pew Research Center report found that one in five young American adults receives their news through TikTok.

A representative for UNESCO didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Oct. 30, #402

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Oct. 30, No. 402.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. I guess I don’t know my pitches very well. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Join our group.

Green group hint: Get away from me!

Blue group hint: Throw it over the plate.

Purple group hint: Like Nicholas.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Ways to add someone to a team.

Green group: Lose a would-be tackler.

Blue group: Softball pitches, with -ball.

Purple group: Nick ____.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is ways to add someone to a team. The four answers are draft, free agency, trade and waivers.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is lose a would-be tackler. The four answers are break, shake, shed and slip.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is softball pitches, with -ball. The four answers are curve, drop, fast and rise.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is Nick ____. The four answers are Chubb, Mangold, Nurse and Sirianni.

Technologies

How to Redeem Every Pokemon Legends: Z-A Mystery Gift Code and Reward

Prepare for your city-spanning Pokemon adventure with some extra goodies. These free mystery gift codes and rewards are available for you to grab today.

After 12 years, it’s finally time for Pokemon players to head back to the Kalos region in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, the newest game in the popular monster-catching franchise. If you’ve missed the worldwide capital of Mega Pokemon, fairy-type Pokemon and a whole bunch of baked bread, now’s the time to jump back into the world of pocket monsters.

The Switch 2’s first Pokemon game seems a bit scarier this time around. Though the beautiful Lumiose City projects safety and security, recent unexplained rampages from wild Mega Pokemon threaten the peace.

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Between unearthing the cause of this phenomenon and taking down competitors in the Z-A Royale Pokemon battle ladder, there’s a lot of work to do in the Kalos region. You’ll need special partners to get the job done — and there are some special Mystery Gifts that have just the powerful pals you’re looking for.

Even though Pokemon Legends: Z-A is still a fairly new game, there are already three Mystery Gift codes you can redeem right now. These will unlock a rare Pokemon and tons of items that will help you prepare for competitive mode, which is especially important if you want to unlock limited-time Mega Stones that are walled behind ranked player-versus-player battling.

All active Mystery Gifts for Pokemon Legends: Z-A

While some Pokemon Legends: Z-A promo codes are uniquely tied to Nintendo purchases, we’ve gathered every free code and redemption requirement in one place for you here.

Below is a chart that contains every active Mystery Gift code for Pokemon Legends: Z-A, what it unlocks and its expiration date:

Active Pokemon Legends: Z-A Mystery Gifts

Reward	Code or alternative redemption requirements	Expiration date
Ralts holding Gardevoirite	No associated code. Select «Get via internet» in the Mystery Gift menu.	Feb. 28, 2026
100x Poke Balls	Every code is unique. You can unlock the code for this Mystery Gift by purchasing the digital version of Pokemon Legends: Z-A. The code will be sent to the email associated with your Nintendo account.	March 10, 2026
3x Fast Balls, 3x Lure Balls, 3x Heavy Balls, 3x Level Balls	Every code is unique. You can unlock the code for this Mystery Gift by purchasing the Mega Dimension DLC. The code will be sent to the email associated with your Nintendo account.	March 10, 2026

How to redeem Mystery Gifts in Pokemon Legends: Z-A

If you have Mystery Gift codes to redeem in Pokemon Legends: Z-A, you’re likely eager to grab those rewards as soon as possible. But you need to do a little bit of legwork before unlocking the code redemption menu.

To unlock Mystery Gift functionality, you need to progress through the main story until you reach the third main mission, called A New Life in Lumiose City.

During this mission, you’ll meet Mable, the acting director of the Pokemon Research Lab in Kalos. Once you unlock Mable’s research, a new «Link Play» tab becomes accessible in the pause menu.

Within the Link Play tab, you can redeem Mystery Gift codes — as long as you’re connected to the internet.

What are Mystery Gifts?

Mystery Gifts are a long-running way to reward Pokemon players with extra goodies. The official gift distributions have existed since Pokemon Gold and Silver was released in 1999.

Back then, players needed to have special hardware — like a Game Boy Advance Wireless Adaptor — in order to acquire Mystery Gifts. Newer games make the process much easier, since you need only connect to Wi-Fi in order to access gifts for the Pokemon games on the Nintendo Switch.

While some Mystery Gifts are accessible for free, others are unlocked by promo codes that you’ll have to hunt down through specific means. Mystery Gifts are good ways to gather precious items, add mythical Pokemon to the Pokedex and capture rare shiny Pokemon.