The biggest news of the week has dropped as Apple officially debuted its newest addition to the Mac lineup: the MacBook Neo, which brings the amazing Mac experience at such an unprecedented, lower price, starting at just $599. Since the MacBook Neo is an entirely new product from Apple, there are several tidbits and very subtle details that may have easily been overlooked or that you may not know off the top of your head. So without further ado, here are the top tidbits that you need to know about this MacBook Neo.
A18 Pro chip is actually binned
Starting off with the Apple silicon that powers the MacBook Neo, although the A18 Pro chip also powers the previous-generation iPhone 16 Pro models, the chip inside the MacBook Neo is actually a binned variant with one less GPU core (for a total of 5 GPU cores). The chip inside the iPhone 16 Pro has six GPU cores enabled. The A18 Pro chip in both the MacBook Neo and the iPhone 16 Pro has the same number of CPU cores: 2 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores for a total of 6.
Only memory option is 8GB
The A18 chip in the MacBook Neo features 8GB of RAM. This is the same amount of RAM for the iPhone 16 Pro models. However, for the MacBook Neo, that is your only option when it comes to memory, as you cannot upgrade it beyond 8GB of RAM.
Only two storage options: 256GB and 512GB.
There are two storage configurations available: 256GB and 512GB; if you prefer more internal storage, such as 1TB or above, then the MacBook Neo may not be the machine to get.
Display is slightly smaller and downgraded in some way
The MacBook Neo features a stunning 13.0-inch Liquid Retina display with a resolution of 2408 by 1506 pixels at 219 pixels per inch with up to 500 nits of brightness. This display is smaller than that of the 13-inch MacBook Air (M5). Although it still supports 1 billion colors, the only downside is that it only supports sRGB color, just like the base iPad. It also lacks True Tone technology. Both the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro support the improved P3 wide color gamut and True Tone technology.
The display still has the top rounded corners and no notch for uniform bezels around the display.
Smaller battery, yet provides solid battery life
The MacBook Neo features a 36.5-watt-hour lithium-ion battery, which is smaller than that of the 13-inch MacBook Air, which has a 53.8-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery. However, thanks to the efficiency of the A18 Pro, you should see up to 16 hours of battery life (compared to up to 18 hours for the 13-inch MacBook Air). So battery life should remain similar overall, as it varies by usage and configurations.
Interestingly, it includes the 20W USB-C Power Adapter in the box along with a 1.5-m USB-C charging cable.
Color-matching Magic Keyboard and Touch ID on 512GB models
The MacBook Neo features the phenomenal Magic Keyboard that’s now color-matched to the color that you choose (silver, blush, indigo, or citrus). However, the Magic Keyboard is not backlit. This was similar to the polycarbonate MacBooks from 2006-2011, where they lacked backlit keys. Neither the Magic Keyboard Folio (iPad) nor the Magic Keyboard (iPad Air) has backlit keys as well. While Apple announced Touch ID as one of the features for this laptop, it’s actually not standard across both storage configurations. If you prefer this feature, then you would have to spend $100 more for the 512GB tier to get this feature.
Multi-Touch Trackpad lacks Force Touch technology
The built-in Multi-Touch actually lacks Force Touch technology that’s been on the higher-end MacBook Air and MacBook Pro for years. The last MacBook that lacked Force Touch technology was the non-Retina MacBook Air before it was redesigned in October 2018.
Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 6
Apple didn’t announce that the MacBook Neo featured the N1 networking chip, which means this MacBook will continue to feature the same Wi-Fi 6E speeds. It did get the more modern Bluetooth 6 standard, though. Come to think of it, the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth standards are now inconsistent when going from the lowest-end to the highest-end of the lineup:
| MacBook Neo | MacBook Air (M5) | MacBook Pro (14-inch, M5) | MacBook Pro (14-inch/16-inch, M5 Pro/M5 Max) | |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 7 | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 7 |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 6 | Bluetooth 6 | Bluetooth 5.3 | Bluetooth 6 |
Built-in webcam lacks Center Stage; slightly downgraded speaker system/mic array
Although the MacBook Neo doesn’t get the same 12MP Center Stage camera found in the iMac and higher-end MacBooks, the MacBook Neo still has a 1080p FaceTime HD camera. Additionally, MacBook Neo has a dual-speaker sound system where the speakers can be found on both sides of the laptop. It also has dual microphones and even a headphone jack (albeit lacks support for high-impedance headphones).
Two USB-C ports are actually different
Just because the MacBook Neo features two USB-C ports, that doesn’t mean they’re both created equal. According to Apple, the leftmost port supports charging, DisplayPort, and USB 3 speeds (up to 10Gb/s). However, the other port is limited as it just supports charging and USB 2 speeds (up to 480Mb/s), and that port lacks DisplayPort, so you couldn’t use that port to connect to external monitors.
Connects to one external display
Speaking of external displays, the MacBook Neo can support one external display with up to a native resolution of 4K at 60Hz.
Size and Weight
Compared to the 13-inch MacBook Air, the MacBook Neo actually has a slightly smaller footprint, yet it’s slightly thicker at 0.50 inches. But it weighs the same as the 13-inch MacBook Air.
Conclusion
So, really, the one thing that you can configure the MacBook Neo (other than selecting the colors) is the storage. Still, this new MacBook Neo provides an incredible value for what you’re paying for, as you’re getting the whole package with the built-in display, keyboard, and trackpad, unlike an iPad or Mac mini, which you would have to buy a separate keyboard/mouse. And it doesn’t cost too much to get more storage with the 512GB option. All in all, Apple hit a home run with the MacBook Neo, and this laptop is definitely going to destroy the budget PC and Chromebook market.
Stay tuned as we cover more about the MacBook Neo.
