Of all the devices Apple has released this year, the MacBook Neo stands out as one of the more curious offerings thus far. It’s a compact laptop that runs on an iPhone chip. To be more specific, it packs the A18 Pro, the same processor used in the iPhone 16 Pro models.
Of course, there are a few other compromises to maintain its affordable price. The Neo skips out on several features present on its fancier siblings. Overall, it’s a simpler, more stripped down device meant for lighter workflows. Basically, it’s not a particularly powerful machine, but it promises to be a reliable productivity partner.
What Am I Looking At?
The MacBook Neo largely adopts the same design elements as its higher-end counterparts. It sports an aluminium chassis with rounded corners, giving it the signature premium look and feel. In terms of colour, you get your choice of Silver, Blush, Citrus, and Indigo. Our review unit is the option at the tail end, in all its desaturated blue hue. While not as fun and playful as the brighter models, it does have its own charm; it’s subtle without being boring, so it has a more refined vibe.
Regardless of the chosen shade, you get a 13-inch Liquid Retina display with an admittedly meagre 500 nits of peak brightness. Unlike its fancier siblings, the Neo lacks a notch, so the 1080p camera is hidden away in the bezel. Speaking of which, the bezels are thicker than those of the more premium models.
Furthermore, you get a dual-speaker setup and a pretty modest selection of ports. There are two USB-C ports, though only one of these can pair with an external display. Rounding things off is the 3.5mm headphone jack.
As for internals, Apple has equipped the Neo with 8GB of RAM and up to 512GB of storage. Price notwithstanding, there is one more difference between these options. If you pick the 512GB variant, the Magic Keyboard comes with Touch ID. The 256GB version, which is the one you’re looking at now, misses out on this.
What’s Good About It?
It probably goes without saying that build quality is one of the MacBook Neo’s strengths. Despite positioning it as a budget option, it seems Apple did not skimp on materials. You can tell it’s a sturdy and durable little machine. The laptop feels solid and robust, especially when compared to other options in this category. I would go so far as to say that it feels more luxurious than some of the more premium Windows laptops out there.
Furthermore, the thin and compact form factor makes it extremely portable and easy to use anywhere. In my bag, the laptop all but disappears, with its weight being the only indication that I did not somehow forget to pack it. While I wouldn’t say that it’s heavy, it’s not quite as featherlight as it appears. Apple says the Neo weighs 1.23kg, which isn’t much. But since all the mass is concentrated into a pretty small body, it feels quite dense. Still, the laptop is light enough to carry around without being flimsy. Doing work while on the go is also no problem, since it takes up little space.
On the subject of work, you can expect the Neo to handle most routine tasks without any fanfare. Web browsing, checking and composing emails, as well as video and voice calls, proceed without any hitches or hiccups. While it does lag a bit when there’s too much going on at once, I have yet to see any complete freezes, even with my tendency to have no less than 30 tabs open at all times.
The speakers are also pretty decent. Sure, they do pale in comparison to the more capable MacBook models, but you get clear, crisp audio. If you’re going from a Windows device to the Neo, the difference is like night and day.
Another highlight is the battery life. Apple claims that the laptop can last up to 16 hours, but you can definitely get a bit more than that. Working on and off, I only really needed to reach for the charger after a day and a half. It is worth noting that I do have the display dimmed almost all the way down when writing, so your mileage will vary here.
What’s The Catch?
At the highest brightness setting, the screen is still fairly dim. Granted, this is no problem in indoor settings (and especially so if you’re like me and despise overly bright displays). But in situations where you have the full concentrated power of the sun beamed directly down on you, you won’t be able to see what you’re doing.
Meanwhile, the keyboard isn’t backlit. Again, less of a con and not really an issue in most cases. However, if you do find yourself compelled to work in the wee hours of the night, you’ll probably need to brush up on your touch typing skills.
Saying that the MacBook Neo uses the same chip as the iPhone 16 Pro isn’t quite accurate. Sure, they both pack the A18 Pro, but while the one on the handset has a 6-core GPU, the one on the laptop features a 5-core GPU. As far as benchmarks go, the Neo noticeably lags behind its more powerful siblings. Raw numbers aside, the laptop is good enough for day-to-day purposes, but falters during heavy-duty tasks like gaming.
On that note: Yes, I personally do think gaming on the Neo is a bad idea. Since macOS doesn’t exactly support a wide variety of titles to begin with, your options are pretty limited if you’re not willing to look into workarounds. Even so, you will want to turn the graphics settings down if you want a smooth experience. Games like Resident Evil 4 run at around 30 to 50fps on low settings, and you can expect to see frame rates drop during combat.
Of course, the lack of a built-in fan also holds it back from performing well here. The laptop gets pretty toasty pretty quickly, so it’s best not to push it too far.
Should I Buy It?
With a starting price of RM2,499, the MacBook Neo is arguably one of the more worthwhile products Apple has to offer. If you’re looking to hop onto the Apple bandwagon and don’t really need that much processing power, then you really can’t go wrong with this laptop. It’s portable and reliable enough for light workloads, and it’s easy on the eyes too.
@lowyatnet We unboxed and took a quick look at the MacBook Neo. Apple’s new entry-level laptop is now available for a starting price of RM2,499. #MacBookNeo #AppleMalaysia #MacBookMY
That said, if you’re looking for something that packs a little more punch, the Neo doesn’t quite cut it. Its charm lies in being a simple and uncomplicated device.
Photography by Archilius Sampurai, Nurul Kamil.
