(Credit: Walmart)
Surprisingly, Walmart has only sold Mac products through third-party merchants on its website, but that changes today with a new Apple partnership.
Walmart is now officially selling the 2020 M1 MacBook Air for only $699. The 13.3-inch laptop is currently on sale via Walmart.com and will be available at select stores.
“This is the first time customers can purchase a Mac directly from Walmart,” the retailer says.
Until now, Walmart has mainly been focused on selling affordable Windows PCs, including laptops from the revived Gateway computer brand, now owned by Acer. In contrast, Macs have long been known for their premium pricing. But it looks Apple sees an opportunity to rake in some profits by selling older MacBook models at a discount to Walmart consumers.
“Our mission at Walmart is to help customers save money so they can live better—it’s not an either/or proposition,” says Walmart EVP Julie Barber. “We’re working hard to bring premium brands to our physical and virtual shelves, and we’re excited to work with Apple to do just that.”
The sales will also revive mainstream exposure for the 2020 M1 MacBook Air, which Apple discontinued earlier this month after introducing the M3 MacBook Air. Instead, the M1 MacBook Air is only available on Apple’s refurbished store, starting at $759.
The $699 MacBook Air sold on Walmart mentions nothing about being reused or refurbished. For now, it looks like Walmart is only selling one configuration that includes 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Other listings for Mac products on Walmart.com are sold through third-party computer merchants.