Hardware
MacBook Neo
Apple’s most affordable laptop is revolutionary in more ways than one
From £599 FROM apple.com/uk FEATURES Apple A18 Pro chip (6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine), 8GB unified memory, 13in Liquid Retina display (2408x1506), 256GB storage (512GB available), Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 6, 2x USB-C
The Neo blends the premium materials of a MacBook Air with the fun of an old-school iBook
The MacBook Neo’s FaceTime HD camera is okay quality, but lacks cool features such as Center Stage.
The MacBook Neo is something we never thought we’d see and seems almost anti-Apple at first glance. The cheapest MacBooks tend to start at £999, with the exception of older models like the MacBook Air M1 that have dipped as low as £699 on sale. The MacBook Neo starts at £599 (£499 for education). That’s £500 less than the new M5-equipped MacBook Air.
That price should be setting off all sorts of alarm bells, but here’s the thing. Based on our time testing the MacBook Neo, it is the most well-rounded laptop we’ve ever used for under £600. And it blows away all the Windows laptops in its price range, not to mention most of the best Chromebooks.
That £599 price gets you a sturdy aluminium design, a bright and colourful 500-nit display, and a fairly speedy A18 Pro chip for everyday tasks like surfing the web, watching videos and playing casual games. Plus, you get surprisingly powerful side-mounted speakers. So what are the trade-offs, where does it rank among the best laptops, and is the MacBook Neo right for you?
The speakers on the front-left and front-right sides of the MacBook Neo sound better than you might expect.
The MacBook Neo blends the premium materials and utilitarian aesthetic of a MacBook Air with the fun of an old-school iBook, while giving you just enough of everything to be the right pick for most of you reading this.