When Apple unveiled the MacBook Neo last week, it was to a generally positive reception. Apple, the thinking went, had done it again, pulled a product out of the bag that would be an instant hit.
There are many reasons to like the Neo. It is light, it costs significantly less than the MacBook Pro, and it has enough power to easily cope with everyday tasks. It has the features people want: a good webcam (essential for remote workers), a great display, and battery life that will last a full day away from a charger. It even has an aluminium case that makes it look and feel more expensive than it is.
It’s like the Goldilocks of the MacBook line-up. Not too big, not too small and, most importantly, not too expensive. At €699, it is not quite bargain basement pricing but it is the cheapest MacBook that Apple has made, and it seems like the ideal choice for education, a second laptop or a travel laptop.
Until the Neo came along, that was the domain of the MacBook Air (price €1,249). And while the two devices may seem like they are fighting over the same market, there are some key differences that make them stand apart from each other.
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The Neo is powered by the A18 Pro that Apple developed for its iPhone 16 smartphones. The Air, on the other hand, gets Apple’s latest M5 chip. That means more power if you want to push the boundaries of what the MacBook is capable of without having to upgrade to the Pro version.
But that doesn’t mean the Neo isn’t capable – it has more than enough power for most tasks, from word processing to image editing. Considering how much the iPhone can cope with, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a smartphone chip can power a laptop.
The Neo runs Mac OS 26, the full desktop software, rather than a hybrid version of the software. It comes with 8GB of RAM compared to the Air’s 16GB, so if you try to push things too much it will show its limitations. There are only two USB-C ports, and neither supports Thunderbolt: one is USB 3.0 for data transfer, Display Port support and charging, and the other is a USB 2.0 port for data and power.
One of those will be needed for power, with the Neo relying on USB-C instead of MagSafe for charging. This isn’t the worst sacrifice to make; with the most recent MacBooks, I frequently skipped the MagSafe connection in favour of USB-C anyway. It was just more convenient. So no MagSafe in the Neo wouldn’t be a deal-breaker; in fact, it is one less cable to keep track of.
[ Apple unveils new MacBook Neo, iPhone 17e in week of product revealsOpens in new window ]
It also swaps out the camera for a 1080p high definition FaceTime camera, enough to do video calls without things getting blurred and soft around the edges. However, it is no rival to the 12 megapixel camera on the MacBook Air, which also includes Centre Stage to keep the subject in the centre of the frame.
Over the early days of this review, the MacBook Neo was used for work, image editing, gaming and for watching streaming video. It handled everything, although heavier workloads such as 4K would be more taxing.
So why should you go for Apple’s lower-cost MacBook? Price is the obvious reason. Many of the features that the Neo lacks are simply nice extras that most people won’t feel the loss of.
It is also a handy education pitch. That is a territory that has been dominated by low-cost Chromebooks and Windows laptops, but if you want something a little harder wearing, the Neo with its aluminium case may be just what you need.
If you need to work over multiple monitors, though, the Neo is not for you. It supports a single external monitor. Ditto for heavy video editing or 3D rendering work, with the 8GB RAM limiting the ability to multitask and run heavier workloads.
Good
Light, easy to use and comes in some new colours – pink and citrus – the MacBook Neo feels like a fresh take on the format, even though it sticks to the familiar design.
It is perfect for everyday tasks, has a great display and it runs full MacOS 26, so it doesn’t feel like an iPad stopgap.
Given its size, the speakers are also impressive.
Bad
A little light on RAM at 8GB, but it should be enough for most tasks that the Neo is intended for. Storage tops out at 512GB too.
Apple doesn’t include power adaptors in the box any more, not even for the top of the range MacBook Pro. But the previously mentioned move to include USB C only means it is highly likely you will already have a working charger at home.
Everything else
No power adaptor in the box, but the Neo uses USB C for power so it is highly likely there is already a compatible charger hanging around the house. That also means no MagSafe support. TouchID is available in the higher-spec model.
The verdict
The Neo is an ideal fit for those who want MacBook features at a more budget-friendly price.
