The MacBook Neo has been out since yesterday for customers who pre-ordered one. While the MacBook Neo scores in both value and performance for the price, a recent teardown from Australian YouTube repair channel Tech Re-Nu reveals that this may be Apple’s most repairable laptop we’ve ever seen in years.
For starters, the MacBook Neo uses standard Torx screws (T3, T5, and T8). Secondly, and more importantly for repairability, the MacBook Neo’s built-in battery is not glued to the chassis, unlike the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro. In fact, the battery is secured by 18 screws, and it can easily be lifted and replaced – not even stretch-release adhesive tabs can be found in the disassembly.
The MacBook Neo’s modularity also extends to its ports and components, including the USB-C ports, speakers, and the headphone jack, and all of these can be easily swapped. In fact, the only adhesive that you’ll find in the MacBook Neo is at the trackpad location where a cable connects it to the motherboard.
Even more impressive, the MacBook Neo’s keyboard can easily be replaced without replacing the entire top case. Before, with the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, you would have to replace the entire top case just to have the keyboard repaired; this was why repairs for the butterfly keyboard in the 2015-2019 era were a nightmare in repairability because those keyboards were so fragile that Apple had to initiate a repair program to satisfy its customers by fixing the keyboards for free.
Going back to the topic, this change in the keyboard’s design is a huge step in repairability overall. I suppose the fact that the MacBook Neo is thicker than the MacBook Air has to contribute to the extra space necessary for screws to hold the components in place and to make repairs easier overall. We’ve also seen this with the base iPad with its thicker design and non-laminated display, which is much more reparable compared to a laminated display. Since the display and the cover glass are separate components in a non-laminated display, and if either of those components breaks, it would be easier for technicians to replace one of the components without replacing the entire assembly, as they would for a laminated display.
MacBook Neo’s higher score in reparability makes perfect sense for the education market, and educators will surely buy these in bulk to distribute to younger students. Laptops like the Neo should be reparable so that in case one breaks due to some mishap by younger kids, perhaps, technicians will have peace of mind to repair the laptop by replacing the necessary, individual components with ease.
The MacBook Neo is available for $599 ($499 for students/educators). For $100, you can upgrade it to 512GB of storage, and it comes in silver, blush, indigo, and citrus.
