MacBook Pro power for under $300 feels almost illegal

TL;DR: Refurbished 13″ 3.1GHz i5 MacBook Pro dropped to $279.97 (reg. $1,499), but only until October 12 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

This refurbished Apple MacBook Pro 13″ with Touchbar from 2017 in Space Gray just pulled off a Houdini-level escape from the overpriced aisle. It’s dropped another $219 from $499 during Deal Days: our answer to Prime Day.

So who’s this laptop for? Picture the guy burning the midnight oil, toggling between Zoom calls and spreadsheets that could rival a Tolstoy novel. He doesn’t need excuses — he needs horsepower that makes his work look effortless. Or the weekend filmmaker cutting together his cousin’s wedding video and a skateboard highlight reel in the same sitting. He wants a machine that won’t flinch when timelines stack up like dominoes.

Then there’s the entrepreneur running three side hustles and five browser windows. Product photos upload faster, webpages load cleaner, and late-night inventory management doesn’t feel like punishment. Even the gamer dabbling in indie development gets mileage here; 8 GB of RAM and a solid-state drive mean those builds compile in minutes instead of hours.

This MacBook Pro isn’t fresh out of the box, but it’s been through the Apple refurb cycle, which is less “secondhand” and more “reborn with receipts.” Think of it like a vintage sports car after a meticulous tune-up; there maybe a little character in the paint, but the engine purrs like it’s ready to take the Autobahn.

It’s a workhorse wrapped in sleek Space Gray, ready to carry ideas from caffeine-fueled brainstorms into polished execution. But the clock is ticking, and procrastination is the enemy of deals this good.

Because when a MacBook Pro with specs like this dips below three hundred dollars, it’s not just an upgrade. It’s an invitation.

Pick up this refurb refurbished Apple MacBook Pro 13″ with Touchbar and 3.1GHz i5 with 8GB RAM, plus a 512GB SSD in Space Gray for $279.97 (reg. $1,499) during Deal Days. Sale ends October 12 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

Apple MacBook Pro 13″ Touchbar (2017) 3.1GHz i5 8GB RAM 512GB SSD Space Gray (Refurbished)