Skip to footer

Here's when Apple's new iPads will go on sale

Apple's iPad lineup changed dramatically this week with the introduction of the iPad Mini 4 and iPad Pro. Expect discounts on the Mini 4 first. 

|
Beck Diefenbach/Reuters/File
Phil Schiller, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing at Apple Inc, speaks about the full line of iPad pricing during an Apple media event in San Francisco.

The iPad lineup changed dramatically this afternoon as Apple unveiled its newest tablets, the iPad mini 4 and the iPad Pro. Ranging in price from $399 to $799, respectively, these new tablets are ready to shake up the iPad family tree.

So what can you expect in terms of future iPad deals? Here's what we were able to find out.

iPad mini 4

The iPad mini 4 was an afterthought at Apple's press event this afternoon. However, this could be the iPad with the best deals if you have your heart set on one of Apple's just-announced tablets.

First Deal: Last year, it took retailers just 15 days to offer the first iPad mini 3 deal, which shaved $20 off the tablet's $399 price tag. This year we're predicting a similar trajectory with the new iPad mini 4. You can expect to see retailers take $20 off its price within two weeks of its release.

Holiday Deal: Retailers surprised us with their iPad mini 3 deals last November, cutting the price of the tablet to $300. This price was easy to find, as it was offered by Target, Best Buy, and Micro Center. So if you have the patience and want to save the most money, we suggest buying your iPad mini 4 during Black Friday week when you can expect it to hit the $300 mark.

iPad mini 2

Apple mysteriously killed the iPad mini 3 from its lineup, making the iPad mini 2 its new base model.

First Deal: With its new lower $269 price tag, the iPad mini 2 will represent one of the best values in Apple's tablet ecosystem. This summer, we saw retailers like Staples and Best Buy offering the iPad mini 2 for $230. Now that the mini 2 has a lower price tag, retailers may not be inclined to cut its price any lower, so expect deals to remain in the $230 range.

Holiday Deal: The iPad mini 2 briefly hit $199 last Black Friday, making it the cheapest iPad we've ever seen. The short-lived deal, which was offered by Staples, lasted about five hours. This holiday season we expect the iPad mini 2 to hit the same price point again. Also, since this iPad is now two years old, we expect deals at this price to be easier to find.

iPad Air 2

The iPad Air 2 could become the first iPad tablet to last over a year without being replaced.

First Deal: Like the aforementioned iPad mini, the Apple iPad Air 2 is a tremendous value purchase in that you're getting a powerful tablet for way under its original price tag. This summer, the tablet has dipped as low as $359 direct from Target. Deals are so abundant that even the 64GB model has dropped to an all-time price low of $475 (down from $599). Expect to see more deals at these or similar price points in the coming weeks.

Holiday Deal: Without an iPad Air 3, the iPad Air 2 is positioned to take on the full force of Black Friday. That means this could be the first "flagship" iPad to hit under the $359 mark (excluding the iPad mini line). The original iPad Air has been retailing for $300, so it's possible that the iPad Air 2 will hit this price point during Black Friday.

iPad Pro

Starting at $799, this is Apple's most expensive iPad model.

First Deal: Unfortunately, chances are you won't see a deal on the iPad Pro until January 2016, if not later. In the past, retailers have been slow to discount new iPad lines. The original iPad mini, for instance, debuted in October of 2012 and didn't see its first deal until January 2013. That deal took a modest 3% off its full price.

Holiday Deal: We'd love to see an iPad Pro deal this Black Friday, but its highly unlikely since it debuts in November. Should a brave retailer like Walmart, Target, or Best Buy discount Apple's mega-tablet, you can expect it to be a very modest and short-lived deal. Your chances are greater of finding an iPad Pro bundle, where a retailer like Target might charge full price for the iPad Pro, but bundle it with a $25 or $50 gift card. (That is, assuming other stores sell the Pro at the time of debut; the mini was initially an Apple Store exclusive which put a damper on deals.)

Price Points for All Budgets

Although the market may seem over saturated with iPads, having multiple options is actually a good thing for consumers because it means you can purchase an iPad at multiple price points.

If it's value you're after, the iPad mini 2 and iPad Air 2 will offer the most bang for your buck. However, if you want a new iPad, go for the iPad mini 4, which will see more deals than the iPad Pro, the latter of which we predict won't see any significant deals until January 2016.

Be sure to check back at DealNews for all the best iPad deals as they come out, or sign up for ourelectronics newsletter to have them delivered right to your inbox.

Which iPad are you planning to buy? What price are you hoping to see?

This article first appeared in DealNews.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.
editor@csmonitor.com
Subscribe
Mark Sappenfield
Editor

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

Subscribe to insightful journalism

QR Code to Here's when Apple's new iPads will go on sale
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/Business/Saving-Money/2015/0912/Here-s-when-Apple-s-new-iPads-will-go-on-sale
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe