The weekend’s best deals: New Apple iPad Air, tons of PC games, and more – Ars Technica

It’s the weekend, which means it’s time for another Dealmaster. Our latest roundup of the best tech deals from around the web includes an early discount on Apple’s newest iPad Air, the 64GB version of which is down to $570 at Amazon. That’s just a $30 discount, but it’s notable given that the tablet only began shipping last week. The one caveat is that Amazon is showing shipping delays as of this writing; if you need to have the device within the next couple of weeks, you may still be better off paying full price at Apple. But if you were planning on picking up the tablet anyway and are willing to wait, it’s a nice little savings.

We gave the new iPad Air a positive review last week, calling it “the best tablet for most people who can afford it.” While it isn’t a major overhaul compared to the previous model, it upgrades to Apple’s M1 system-on-a-chip, which is the same SoC used in the iPad Pro and MacBook Air, among other pricier Apple devices. It’s exceptionally quick as a result, to the point where performance shouldn’t be an issue for years to come. The included USB-C port now delivers faster transfer speeds, too, and the front-facing camera is now a 12 MP unit (up from 7 MP) that supports Apple’s “Center Stage” feature.

The iPad Air’s closest competition still comes from Apple itself. The 11-inch iPad Pro includes twice as much storage by default (128GB), better speakers, and a brighter display that supports a higher 120 Hz refresh rate, but it costs about $180 more. The entry-level iPad, meanwhile, is far more affordable at $329 and still performs well for everyday tablet tasks, but it’s not as powerful on the whole and uses a more dated design. For those willing to pay a bit more, the new iPad Air is a strong middle ground: it still has a great display for media consumption, and when paired with the right accessories, it’s as powerful as the current iPad Pro for getting more involved work done.

Beyond that, our roundup also includes a sweeping new “Spring Sale” at Epic Games’ PC gaming storefront. We’ve marked our favorite deals of the bunch below, but the sale includes good prices on former Ars game of the year winners Hades, Celeste, and Control, plus other Ars-approved hits like Untitled Goose Game, Horizon Zero Dawn, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Inscryption, and Disco Elysium, among many others. A handful of these deals are also available at other storefronts such as GOG and Humble.

Elsewhere, we have deals on the just-released Switch game Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Amazon Fire HD tablets, recommended noise-canceling headphones and wireless gaming mice, external hard drives, Anker USB-C chargers, and much more. You can check out our full curated roundup below.

Ars Technica may earn compensation for sales from links on this post through affiliate programs.

Featured deals of the day

Electronics deals

Laptop and desktop PC deals

• WD Elements (14TB) desktop hard drive for $210 ($245) at Newegg (use code: 93XSR68)
• WD Elements (18TB) desktop hard drive for $300 ($360) at Amazon, B&H
• Samsung 980 (1TB NVMe) PCIe 3.0 internal SSD for $100 ($110) at Samsung, Amazon, Best Buy
• Samsung 970 Evo Plus (2TB NVMe) PCIe 3.0 internal SSD for $200 ($220) at Amazon, Best Buy
• AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 6-core/12-thread desktop processor for $229 ($285) at Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart
• AMD Ryzen 9 5900X 12-core/24-thread desktop processor for $449 ($520) at Amazon, Best Buy
• AMD Ryzen 9 5950X 16-core/32-thread desktop processor for $590 ($710) at Amazon
• Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga 13.5-inch 2-in-1 laptop (Core i7-1160G7, 2256 x 1504, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) for $1,189 ($1,500) at Lenovo (use code: TITANOFFER)
• Gigabyte G34WQC 34-inch gaming monitor (3440×1440, 144 Hz, VA, FreeSync) for $390 ($420) at Amazon, Best Buy

TV and home entertainment deals

• LG C1 (2021) 55-inch 4K OLED TV for $1,197 ($1,355) at Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy
• LG C1 (2021) 65-inch 4K OLED TV for $1,650 ($1,825) at Woot
• Hisense U6G (2021) 65-inch 4K LED TV for $550 ($640) at Best Buy, Walmart
• Sony X90J (2021) 65-inch 4K LED TV for $1,098 ($1,240) at Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart

Gaming deals

Video game deals

• Epic Games Spring Sale: various PC games discounted at Epic
• Inscryption (PC) for $14 ($19) at GOG, Humble, Epic
• Disco Elysium – The Final Cut (PC) for $16 ($30) at GOG, Epic
• Hades (PC) for $16 ($20) at Epic (also on Game Pass)
• Death’s Door (PC, PS5, PS4) for $14 ($19) at GOG, Humble, Epic, PSN (also on Game Pass)
• The Messenger (PC) for $8 ($15) at GOG, Humble, Epic
• Control: Ultimate Edition (PC) for $12 ($20) at GOG, Epic
• Ape Out (PC) for $5 ($10) at GOG, Humble, Epic
• Loop Hero (PC) for $7 ($12) at GOG, Humble, Epic

• Bravely Default II (PC) for $36 ($55) at Humble, Steam
• Axiom Verge (PC) for $6 ($15) at Epic
• Bugsnax (PC) for $15 ($25) at Epic
• The Talos Principle (PC) for $4 ($15) at Humble
• Far: Lone Sails (Xbox, PC) for $3 ($10) at Xbox, GOG
• Celeste (Xbox, PC) for $5 ($15) at Xbox, Epic
• Night in the Woods (Xbox) for $10 ($20) at Xbox
• Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice – GOTY Edition (Xbox) for $30 ($40) at Xbox
• Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition (Xbox, PS4) for $20 ($30) at Xbox, PSN
• It Takes Two (Xbox, PS4, PC) for $16 ($25) at Amazon, Xbox, PSN, Steam (also on Game Pass)

• Mass Effect Legendary Edition (Xbox, PS4, PC) for $25 ($35) at Target, Amazon, PSN (also on Game Pass)
• Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 (PS4, Xbox, PC) for $20 ($30) at Best Buy, Xbox, Epic
• Metal Gear Solid V: The Definitive Experience (PS4) for $4 ($15) at PSN ($7 at Xbox)
• Castlevania Anniversary Collection (PS4) for $4 ($15) at PSN ($5 at Xbox)
• Kirby and the Forgotten Land (Switch) for $55 ($60) at Amazon, Walmart (discount in cart)
• Slay the Spire (Switch) for $10 ($20) at Nintendo eShop (also on Game Pass)
• Inside (Switch) for $3 ($15) at Nintendo eShop ($5 at Xbox, GOG, Epic)
• Horizon Chase Turbo (Switch, PC) for $5 ($15) at Nintendo eShop, Epic
• Mark of the Ninja: Remastered (Switch) for $5 ($15) at Nintendo eShop

Accessories and miscellaneous deals