Deals: iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max deals, new iPad mini arrives, iPad Air discounts

2024-10-20

Apple typically discontinues the old iPhone Pro models just as the new generation arrives. However, third-party retailers can continue selling the old Pros.

Amazon has the Apple iPhone 15 Pro at €1,130 for a 256GB unit, €200 less than the equivalent 16 Pro model. The 2023 phone has a smaller display (6.1” vs. 6.3”), a shorter telephoto lens (77mm vs. 120mm) and a lower resolution ultra wide camera (12MP vs. 48MP). Otherwise, it is fairly similar and it supports Apple Intelligence.

An iPhone 16 Pro Max 256GB will set you back €1,450 or you can have the iPhone 15 Pro Max 256GB for €220 less. The older phone has a smaller display (6.7” vs. 6.9”), though this might be a good thing as the 2024 phone is rather large. The tele camera is the same, leaving only the ultra wide (12MP vs. 48MP). We should also mention the new Action Button and Camera Control on the 16-series. The old 15 Pro models have just the Ring/Silent slider.

Apple refreshed the iPad mini out of the blue – the previous model was three years old at this point and not ready for the computational demands of AI. That’s the main difference, the iPad mini (2024) uses the Apple A17 Pro chip (from last year’s iPhone 15 Pro) and double the RAM (8GB), so that it can support Apple Intelligence. There are a few other changes like doubling the base storage to 128GB and adding support for Wi-Fi 6e (up from regular 6), but that’s about it. Still, there are basically no mini flagship tablets out there – the iPad mini stands alone. Note that the iPad mini ships from Wednesday.

Alternatively, you can use one of the M-powered iPads. The Apple iPad Air 11 (2024) is just €38 more than the mini, so it’s a question of whether you want screen size or portability.

The larger iPad Air 13 (2024) seems to be less popular than its 11” sibling, so there’s a limit to “bigger is better”. Note that while the iPad mini has video out, it can only do screen mirroring – only M-powered iPads have Stage Manager.

We change tack and will be looking at Samsung smartwatches next. The Samsung Watch Ultra has the best battery life and is rated to dive the deepest (100m). The Galaxy Watch7 is more stylish and more compact, while having the same 1.5” display. Both have ECG and blood pressure monitoring. The Watch7 is no wimp, it is rated for 50m. Finally, the Samsung Watch FE is a cheap and small watch that also has ECG (but no blood pressure monitoring) and is rated for 50m water resistance.

Amazon unveiled its first-ever color Kindle e-reader. The Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition has a 7” e-paper display, which achieves 300ppi pixel density when showing black and white content and 150ppi for color content. This is great for reading comic books (Comixology is natively supported) or highlighting text with different colors. It’s not cheap at €290, though.

If you plan on sticking with good old black on white print, check out the new Kindle Paperwhite. It is available in regular (16GB) and Signature edition (32GB). The Signature edition adds wireless charging and a light sensor that automatically adjust the warm front light. Note that the Colorsoft is available only as Signature edition and has the same features. The Paperwhite (including the vanilla version) and Colorsoft are waterproof (IPX8) and have a front light with adjustable color temperature.

The regular Paperwhite is much cheaper than the Colorsoft, but you can go even cheaper with the new vanilla Kindle. Its screen is smaller (6” vs. 7”), but is just as sharp – both panels have 300ppi pixel density and this generation has improved contrast. The reason to get the Paperwhite is the larger screen and the IPX8 rating, but whether those are worth the extra €60 is up to you.

Amazon also upgraded the Kindle Scribe. This one is focused on reading documents and note-taking with its large 10.2” display (300ppi, B&W). It adds new AI features that can clean up your handwriting, convert them to digital text and summarize it into bullet points.

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