The Apple Silicon era officially began at the ‘One More Thing’ November 2020 event, as Apple unveiled the new M1 chip. It’s the first Mac processor to be designed in-house by the company, ending a 14-year association with Intel.
The M1 powers the 2020 MacBook Air, 13in MacBook Pro and Mac mini and since April 2024 the 24in iMac. It has received near-universal praise for the performance and battery life improvements. We described the M1 chip as ‘revolutionary’ in our MacBook Air review.
But where can you buy one? With chip shortages and problems with shipping it’s not as easy as it was to buy some Apple Macs. In this article we will share not only who has them in stock, but also the best deals you can get right now!
Where to buy 13in MacBook Pro with M1
2020 M1 MacBook Pro, 8‑Core CPU/8‑Core GPU, 256GB Deals (RRP: £1,299/$1,299)
2020 M1 MacBook Pro, 8‑Core CPU/8‑Core GPU, 512GB Deals (RRP: £1,499/$1,499)
UK resellers:
US resellers:
Where to buy MacBook Air with M1
M1 MacBook Air, 8-core CPU/7-core GPU (RRP: £999/$999)
M1 MacBook Air, 8-core CPU/8-core GPU (RRP: £1,249/$1,249)
UK resellers:
US resellers:
Where to buy Mac mini with M1
Mac mini, M1, 8‑Core CPU / 8‑Core GPU, 256GB (RRP: £699/$699)
Mac mini, M1, 8‑Core CPU / 8‑Core GPU, 512GB (RRP: £899/$899)
UK resellers:
US resellers:
How much do the M1 MacBook Pro, Air, and Mac mini usually cost?
The good news is the new Mac devices don’t get a price hike, despite the M1 upgrade. You also get 10% off with Apple Education pricing across all the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models. Here’s the full breakdown:
MacBook Pro 13in
- MacBook Pro 13in with Apple M1 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 8‑Core GPU (256GB) – £1299/$1299/AUD$1999
- MacBook Pro 13in with Apple M1 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 8‑Core GPU (512GB) – £1499/$1499/AUD$2299
Alternatively, see if you can pick up a deal on an existing MacBook Pro: MacBook Pro deals
Find out how the M1 MacBook Pro compares to the Intel model here: 13in MacBook Pro (M1) vs MacBook Pro (Intel).
Want to know which MacBook is best for you? Here’s more information on the differences between the MacBook Air and Pro.
MacBook Air
- MacBook Air 13 with Apple M1 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 7‑Core GPU (256GB) – £999/$999/AUD$1,599
- MacBook Air 13 with Apple M1 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 8‑Core GPU (512GB) – £1,249/$1,249/AUD$1,949.00
Education pricing on the MacBook Air 13in with the M1 chip starts at £899/US$899.
Want to know more read our comparison of the new and old MacBook Air: New MacBook Air (Silicon) vs MacBook Air (Intel).
Alternatively, see if you can pick up a deal on an existing MacBook Air: MacBook Air deals
Mac mini
- Mac mini with Apple M1 Chip with 8-Core CPU and 8-Core GPU 256GB Storage – £699/$699/AUD$1099
- Mac mini with Apple M1 Chip with 8-Core CPU and 8-Core GPU (512GB) – £899/$899/AUD$1399
Alternatively, see if you can pick up a deal on an existing Mac mini: Mac mini deals
What is the Apple M1 chip? Is it better?
The M1 is armed with an 8-core CPU and an 8-core GPU on a single system on a chip (SoC) – which means you can expect great leaps in speed, graphics, and machine learning performance. If you’re after quantifiable numbers, that translates to 3.5 times better CPU performance, up to 6 times faster GPU performance, and up to 15 times faster machine learning.
What does that mean in practice? The M1 will allow much faster and smoother video and photo editing, gaming, and software development on the new Macs. This works in tandem with the optimisations on macOS Big Sur, the latest version of Apple’s desktop operating system.
The M1 chip is also much more power-efficient. Apple boasted that the M1 offers the “world’s best CPU performance per watt”. This means battery life gets a boost too, with Apple claiming the new MacBook laptops to last up to twice as long. Thankfully, the upgrades come without a leap in price.
Read more about the M1 chip here: How good is Apple’s M1 chip really?
If you’re still on the fence about M1 Macs, check out our Mac buying guide to see which Apple computer is right for you. You may also be interested in a more general round-up of the best Apple deals.
Author: Anyron Copeman, Senior Staff Writer
As the resident expert on Windows, Senior Staff Writer Anyron’s main focus is PCs and laptops. Much of the rest of his time is split between smartphones, tablets and audio, with a particular focus on Android devices.