For as long as we can remember, Apple’s MacBooks have been frustratingly on the expensive side. Want a PC? There are options to fit your budget, but Mac users had to routinely shell out upwards of a grand (the Air was $899 at its absolute lowest), even if you just wanted a laptop for simple tasks or browsing.
That all changes with the debut of the MacBook Neo, a $599 laptop that’s not just available in silver.
A Long Time Coming
Apple’s laptop story stretches back to the PowerBook and iBook days of the ’90s, and in the decades since, the company has largely kept its notebooks in premium territory. Even the 12-inch MacBook, which debuted in 2015 as a featherweight minimalist option, launched at $1,299 and was never really about being affordable. It was discontinued in 2019, and since then the MacBook Air held the entry-level crown, rarely dipping below $999 for a new model. The Neo, then, is something of a first for Apple: a laptop designed from the ground up to undercut, rather than uphold, that price ceiling.
iPhone Power, Laptop Form
For starters, the Neo runs on Apple’s A18 Pro chip, the same silicon powering the iPhone 16 Pro line. That’s not an M-series chip, and Apple isn’t pretending otherwise. But before you write it off, Apple claims this processor outpaces the bestselling Intel Core Ultra 5 PC laptop by 50 percent on everyday tasks and triples it for on-device AI workloads. The 16-core Neural Engine also keeps Apple Intelligence features running locally, which will be key for privacy-minded users. Fanless operation is a bonus, too, so there won’t be any noise when it’s on.
The tradeoffs are real, but also might be negligible for some. RAM tops out at 8GB with no upgrade path, there’s no Thunderbolt, no MagSafe, and the keyboard isn’t backlit. The trackpad is a mechanical clicker rather than Apple’s typical haptic feedback unit. This is actually more interesting than it sounds given that it reportedly clicks uniformly across the entire surface, something most Windows competitors still struggle to pull off. Lastly, the laptop comes with either 256GB and 512GB hard drives, but only the latter gets Apple’s Touch ID.
Hues That Talkin’?
Design-wise, the Neo is doing something the MacBook lineup hasn’t in a while. Four color options are available, in Blush, Indigo, Silver, and Citrus, with color-matched keyboards as well. It draws a clear line back to the iBook G3 era and echoes the current iMac palette. The aluminum enclosure weighs in at 2.7lbs and measures 0.50 inches thick, fractionally chunkier than the Air but otherwise comparable. There’s no notch on the display, either, just a clean full bezel at 13″ with a 2408×1506 resolution and 500 nits of brightness. Battery life is rated at 16 hours, which trails the Air but is still more than enough for a full work day.
Spec Sheet
Model: MacBook Neo
Display: 13-inch Liquid Retina, 2408×1506, 500 nits
Processor: Apple A18 Pro (6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine)
RAM: 8GB unified memory (non-upgradeable)
Storage: 256GB or 512GB
Battery: Up to 16 hours
Camera: 1080p FaceTime HD
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 6, 2x USB-C (USB 3 + USB 2), headphone jack
Weight: 2.7 lbs
OS: macOS Tahoe
Colors: Blush, Indigo, Silver, Citrus
Pricing & Availability
The MacBook Neo is available to pre-order now starting at $599 for the 256GB model, or $699 for 512GB storage with Touch ID included. Education pricing drops those figures to $499 and $599, respectively. Units start shipping March 11 through Apple’s website and retail stores in 30 countries.
Recap
Apple MacBook Neo Laptop
Apple just dropped the MacBook Neo, a $599 laptop that finally makes Mac ownership accessible to pretty much everyone. It runs on the A18 Pro chip from the iPhone 16 Pro, comes in four colors, and hits stores March 11.
