Many consumers are excited when they see that the price of Apple's 2025 Air is as low as more than 7,000 yuan. At this price, you can buy a notebook equipped with an M4 chip, which is really attractive. However, the promotional information on e-commerce platforms is complicated. Which ones are real discounts and which ones are consumption traps, which requires us to carefully distinguish.
Configuration differences behind price cuts
Apple M4 chips have different specifications. Some lower-priced models may use a version with a smaller number of cores, such as a combination of a 10-core CPU and an 8-core GPU. This configuration is sufficient for daily office work, but when dealing with professional software, its performance will be inferior to the high-end 10+10-core version.
Just looking at the name "M4 chip" is not enough when purchasing. You must check the specific number of CPU cores and GPU cores. Memory and hard drive capacity are also key. Low-priced models are often equipped with 16GB of memory and 256GB of hard drive. This may cause bottlenecks in the future for users who need to run multiple large applications at the same time.
Trade-in and subsidy details
E-commerce companies often attract people’s attention by promoting “old for new” and “state subsidies”. In actual operation, the trade-in valuation will be affected by the model and quality of the equipment to a very large extent, and the final price may not match the advertised situation. The so-called subsidies often impose restrictions on payment methods, for example, you must use a specific bank’s Cloud QuickPass.
It is still possible to set complicated superposition rules for those discounts, such as becoming a Platform Plus member, or grabbing limited coupons. When consumers are calculating the final price, they should verify all conditions one by one to prevent missing out on discounts because they cannot meet a certain rule.
How to choose between Pro and Air series
The 2025 Pro 14-inch model is equipped with an updated M5 chip, which has stronger performance and is suitable for professional work such as video editing and programming. Its body has a better heat dissipation design and can maintain high-performance output for a longer period of time, but its price is significantly higher than the Air series.
The Air series is built around being thin, light and portable. The performance of the new model is already smooth enough to handle most tasks involving office, study and light creation. For those users who do not require ultimate performance, but pay more attention to portability and battery life, Air is a more cost-effective option. The point is that you need to make decisions based on your own practical use scenarios.
Long-term effects of different storage configurations
For those who just process documents and browse the web, 256GB storage may be enough. However, once you need to install large-scale professional software and store a large number of photos and videos, space will quickly become tight. If you upgrade to 512GB or higher capacity, you will either have to clean files frequently in the future, or you will have to rely on a mobile hard drive.
Having larger memory, such as 16GB or 24GB, will allow you to multi-task more smoothly, open dozens of browser tabs, and run many office software at the same time. Large memory can effectively reduce lagging. When choosing a configuration, you should leave a margin for your needs in the next one or two years.
Purchase channels and price comparison
As the mainstream purchasing channels, large e-commerce platforms such as JD.com have many activities, their logistics speed is fast, and their after-sales services are relatively standardized. However, its price is not at the lowest level in the entire network. Some authorized dealers or channels that provide educational discounts may give more realistic prices, but the store qualifications need to be paid attention to and screened.
When making a purchase, it is recommended to use price comparison tools to check the price trend of the product in the recent period. There are many so-called "limited time sales" activities that actually fall into the category of regular promotions. If time is not urgent, then you can pay attention to the 618 and Double Ten fallacies, and generally speaking, you can achieve a greater degree of price reduction.
Be wary of price and publicity traps
Faced with slogans like "as low as 7322 yuan", you have to carefully check the corresponding specific models and configurations. This low price may correspond to the configuration of the entry-level model, or it may be a limited-edition snap-up qualification. It is really difficult for ordinary people to buy their favorite high-end models at this price.
Usually, the prominent "original price" on the promotional page is watery, and its purpose is to highlight the intensity of the discount. A more reliable approach is to refer to the general market selling price of the product. For new concept products such as "AI notebooks", you should also remain rational, figure out whether its specific functions are what you need, and avoid paying for marketing words.
When you buy a laptop, do you value more extreme performance or the combined cost-effectiveness and portability? Welcome to share your own opinions in the comment area. If you feel this article is helpful, please give it a like and support.
