MacBook Neo - First Thoughts
Yesterday Apple unveiled a completely new addition to the MacBook family, the first since 2015: The MacBook Neo.
The MacBook Neo is Apple's new (and perhaps first) entry-level laptop. It uses the same A18 Pro chip that the iPhone 16 Pro used, has 8 GB of RAM, and starts at US$599 with 256 GB of storage, with a 512 GB option at just $100 more. Although that isn't the best by today's standards — after all, the minimum for all the other MacBooks has been more than that for a while now — it is not trying to be a top-level computer, but rather a cheaper option that still provides the premium Apple experience.
This device isn't exactly targeted towards me, especially as the stuff I do is much more extensive, but it's not often that I get to talk about big new developments like this (like, seriously) so I just want to throw in my two cents about it anyways!
Since July 2019 the MacBook line-up has consisted purely of the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, the Pro serving as the more high-end and professional option, while the Air was the more economic but relatively underpowered one for a pretty long while. Around 2020 when Apple premiered their Apple Silicon chips (and especially after the release of the M2 in 2022) I did feel like the MacBook Airs definitely caught up with being on a similar level to the Pros, however they did become more expensive and were undoubtedly out of the "entry-level" range by that point (not that they were to begin with exactly, but still).
This new MacBook Neo is supposed to fill that void, being almost half as cheap as the current base-level MacBook Air. Like I said, it is definitely underpowered compared to the other MacBooks out now, but that's really the only big caveat, and it definitely isn't much of one for its target audience as it's definitely still powerful enough to complete regular everyday tasks, which is what it's really meant to do.
The main thing I like about it is that it does not sacrifice any bit of Apple's premium build for their computers. It is still made of lightweight and sturdy aluminum, has the same super high-quality trackpad and keyboard with Touch ID (though the keyboard is white now, which I don't know how to feel about yet), and a standard 13-inch Liquid Retina display.
Also mmmmmm that is such a nice yellow omg
That's all I really have to say about the MacBook Neo itself. Though I will admit, with this new laptop I can't help but think about Apple's former member of the MacBook family: the 12-inch MacBook. I do have quite a bit of personal history with that computer, enough that it probably warrants an entire post to itself, but for now I'll keep it related to this new MacBook Neo.
They aren't exactly comparable, as the 12-inch MacBook was not the entry level option and rather between the MacBook Air and Pro, but there is one thing that I want to bring up here and that is portability.
The 12-inch MacBook was (and I'm pretty sure still is) the lightest MacBook Apple have ever released, and I feel like this MacBook Neo could've had the opportunity to get somewhat close. However, espite being smaller in size to the current MacBook Air (except for the height) it is the exact same weight, so it doesn't really sound as portable as it could be. Of course it does have a larger screen than the 12-inch MacBook, so I didn't expect it to be as lightweight, but it still feels like a bit of a missed opportunity, though I guess we'll figure that out once it actually releases. David Smith posted about this as well.
But at least in comparison to the 12-inch MacBook, no matter how much I love it, it is nice to have more than literally a single port LMAO
In conclusion, even if it is not for me, I am extremely excited for what the MacBook Neo could bring with it, and in general it just always excites me to get a completely new product like this!
