There are third party solutions to fraud that actually work, providing chargeback insurance. Essentially, they screen transactions; if any approved transactions are chargebacked, they refund you. A good start point is https://signifyd.com We dropped in this solution on our e-commerce about 5 years ago; fraud has been a non existent problem. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago

If you’re on a budget, I would suggest Mac of All Trades and Discount Electronics. They have refurbished apple products at discounted prices. Discoune Electronics also has Windows computers. Source: about 1 year ago

One last note, I bought a MacBook Air from 2015 last year on clearance for $195 from this place. The battery is great and the only issue it had was some dings and a USB port working intermittently. Otherwise it does absolutely everything I need and is a delight to use. Buy yourself something used -- certified/refurbished, if you can -- and you'll eventually be in a position to buy yourself exactly what you want or... Source: over 1 year ago

Hey, you can get a good refurbished model from https://macofalltrades.com I bought from them. Source: over 1 year ago

You don't need anything super powerful honestly. I made the transition from Windows to Mac about halfway through my degree and thought it was way better because it's lightweight/battery life/lasted longer than my HP but you'll be fine either way. MacOS is more similar to Linux, which a lot of programmers end up using professionally. A price range would help make a precise recommendation though. macofalltrades.com... Source: over 1 year ago

You could look at macofalltrades.com or such for an older 13" MB Air. See if you can keep it to 2014 (supports Big Sur) or 2015 (supports Monterey). That could get her by for a year or two. Source: over 1 year ago