Apple Holiday Shopping Guide — iPhone, iPad and AirPods to Buy

If you're looking to buy somebody some Apple products this holiday season, this is our complete shopping guide for iPhone, iPad, and AirPods

I'm going to help you choose which model to get. So let's get started. So let's start with the iPhone. If you're looking to save a little bit of money, maybe you're buying this as a first iPhone for a kid or an older person in your family, the best overall iPhone to get is the third generation iPhone SE

It still has a nice looking camera, but nothing too fancy. It has a relatively recent check

the same one that's in the iPhone 13. It stalls a home button, so it's really easy to use

but yet it still supports the modern features like wireless charging and 5G connectivity

And it's the cheapest iPhone to buy new. Off contract, it's $430

If you have a little money to splurge on, the best option is the latest and greatest

iPhone 15 Pro. Both models have a lighter and stronger titanium frame

a super retina XDR display with the Dynamic Island, and a super high refresh rate, an excellent 48 megapixel camera system that can zoom between 3 and 5x optically

with an advanced periscope camera design. Both models have a standard USBC connector

so you can use the same cables that you probably have lying around for other devices in your house

and a customizable action button. And the A17 Pro chip inside is an absolute powerhouse

It will give you long battery life and a long lifespan on the device itself

The iPhone 15 Pro starts at $1,000 with 128 gigabytes of storage

the ProMax at 1,200 with 256. If you don't have that much money to spend and you're okay with losing some of the latest and greatest tech

the regular iPhone 15 and 15 plus are a great compromise, at $200 and $300 cheaper respectfully

but with most of the same features The display isn quite as nice but you still have the dynamic island You still have the USBC connector You still have MagSafe charging You still have a 48 megapixel camera

even though you don't have as much of an optical zoom. And you'll have better battery life

all in the same two size options. Add another $100 and $200 cheaper than that

respectfully, you can buy even older models from the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 lineup

These are still likely to get many years of software updates so that I can still run

latest and greatest, and they still have many of the same features as the newer models as well

So now let's talk about the iPad, and admittedly, this is not a good time to have to buy

somebody an iPad. Apple has gone over a full year without updating any of the models, much less

reduce them in price. Rumors are swirling that Apple is going to have some big updates to all

the iPads starting in just a few months from now. But I know that nobody wants to

unbox a promise of a future iPad on Christmas morning. So nonetheless, if you need to buy somebody

an iPad, here's my advice. The best overall iPad to buy is the 10th generation model. It has a very

compelling starting price at $429. It supports the Apple Pencil with USBC. It has touch ID, a pretty

fast chip inside. It's a good tablet overall at a great price that can still get some work done

Now, if you know somebody has very basic needs, they don't need a nice display, they don't need Apple Pencil support for $100 cheaper, you can get them the iPad 9 at just $329

It's a very basic tablet, but it'll still work great for years to come as a content

consumption device. If you have a little more money to spend, if you're buying this iPad for

someone who wants to use it to get some serious work done, the iPad Air is a worthy upgrade

at $599. It has support for the more advanced magnetically attaching Apple Pencil. It has support

for a magnetically attaching keyboard and track pad You can plug it into an external display and use advanced multitasking just like a desktop computer And it has a more powerful M1 chip inside It also comes into smaller size the iPad

Mini, which has virtually all the same features, and a more handheld, more portable design. Now

don't confuse small for cheap, because it's still $4.99, which is more than the iPad 10. But it's a great

choice for reading ebooks or for maximum portability. Now, if you want to go big, there's also the iPad

Pro, which comes in an 11 and 12.9 inch size. Add in the magnetically attaching keyboard and trackpad

and you have a full-on laptop replacement as an iPad. And it has the specs to back that up. It has the same

M2 chip that powers the MacBook Air, but in an even higher quality display that has full pro motion

and face ID, which you can't get on a laptop. But you have to pay laptop prices because the iPad

Pro starts at 799 and 1099 and that's before the keyboard and trackpad accessory or the Apple Pencil

But if you're buying this iPad as someone's one and only primary computer, it's not a bad

choice if you have the money to spend. Now let's talk AirPods. AirPods are more expensive than other

Bluetooth earbuds, but only with AirPods can you get the same seamless integration and connectivity

advanced spatial and noise-canceling features, and battery life longevity. Here are the best

AirPods to get. The best overall AirPods to buy are the latest AirPods Pro with USBC. You of course get

the USBC connector so you can charge it using the same cable as all of your other devices

and you have all of the latest and greatest features in the slim earbud design. Conversational

awareness automatically lowers the volume when someone's talking to you. Transparency mode will

boost the sound of your environment so you can stay aware of your surroundings Personalized spatial audio will scan the inside of your ears to tune the sound to its best fidelity And AirPods Pro come with differently sized

replaceable rubber tips, so you can make sure you always get a great fit

But you have to pay for all these advanced features at $249

If you don't have as much money to spend, AirPods 3 are a great compromise

You don't have the advanced noise canceling features because, well, you don't have the rubber tips on the end

that seal up your ears anyways, but you do still have a lot of the same advanced features like in-ear detection that pauses music when you take them out, the force-sensitive

little clicky switch that pauses or skips forward, and they support find-by tracking, so you can use

your iPhone to find them when they inevitably get lost. AirPods 3 started $169 from Apple, but you can

regularly find them discounted from Amazon at $139 or $135. Apple also makes over-the-ear headphones called

AirPods Max. These have a lot of the same spatial audio and noise-canceling features

but with a much bigger, bolder sound from bigger speakers. Now there are a lot of cheaper headphones out there

but of course AirPods Max come with a premium metal design, very comfortable ear cups and a mesh that evenly distributes the weight on your head

and of course all the advanced features you expect from every pair of AirPods, easy connectivity, seamless integration with all your devices

And unlike the earbuds, AirPods Max have a dedicated volume dial for easy controls

Now you do have to pay for all these premium features, air pods Macs are very expensive at $550, and they're very rarely discounted below $450 or $500

So that is our complete shopping advice, and you'll want to order fast if you want to get these products in before Hanukkah or Christmas

Remember to like and subscribe if you'll learn something from this video. I'm DeGriphin Jones with Cult of Mac