MacBook Neo vs MacBook Air: Which affordable Apple laptop is right for you?
Apple has launched its most affordable MacBook yet, and as previous leaks suggested, it’s called the MacBook Neo. Priced at just $599, it costs about half the price of the latest M5 MacBook Air.
But the big question is: did Apple cut too many corners to reach that price point, and would you be better off splurging on a MacBook Air instead? Let’s find out.
Price tag – the part that everyone really cares about
Let’s get this out of the way first. The MacBook Neo starts at $599 for 256GB of storage, or $699 if you upgrade to 512GB and want Touch ID on the keyboard. Readers get it even cheaper at $499, which is really amazing.
Meanwhile, the MacBook Air with the M5 chip starts at $1,099 and comes with 512GB of storage and 16GB of RAM. That’s a $500 difference in base prices. But as we’ll see, what you’re giving away with that $500 adds up quickly.
Performance brain: A18 Pro vs Apple M5
This is where the comparison gets interesting. The MacBook Neo is powered by the A18 Pro. It’s the same chip that powers the iPhone 16 Pro, which isn’t a bad thing in itself.
6-core CPU with 5-core GPU and 60GB/s memory bandwidth. In Geekbench 6, it scores around 3,358 in single-core and 8,184 in multi-core. In context, those single-core numbers rival Intel and AMD’s high-end desktop chips, and are more than adequate for a budget laptop.
The MacBook Air M5, however, is a different animal. The M5 is a decent laptop with a 10-core CPU, 10-core GPU, and 153GB/s memory bandwidth. In Geekbench 6, it scores around 4,227 in single-core and up to 17,862 in multi-core. The single-core advantage is about 26% in the M5 yield, but the multi-core gap is much larger.
For everyday use, including web browsing, note-taking, video calls, and writing, the A18 Pro is fast enough. What is a big bottle? Slow memory bandwidth and 8GB of RAM without the option to upgrade it.
Memory bandwidth determines how fast data can move between RAM and the processor. With 60GB/s of memory bandwidth and 8GB of RAM, the A18 Pro may struggle with multitasking, especially when running memory-hungry apps.
Two Liquid Retina screens, one minor drawback
Both screens are Liquid Retina panels, and both hit 500 nits of brightness. On paper, they are almost identical. In fact, the difference is small but real.
The MacBook Neo has a 13-inch display with a resolution of 2408 × 1506, but it does not have True Tone. The MacBook Air M5, in comparison, offers a slightly larger 13.6-inch display with a resolution of 2560 × 1664 and includes True Tone, which automatically adjusts the white balance of the screen based on the ambient light.
In terms of cost cutting, the display is not where Apple has taken the chisel. I think it’s a great display and it doesn’t offer much of a letdown to the MacBook Air’s display.
All-day battery with minimal charging
MacBook Neo is rated for up to 16 hours of battery life. That’s impressive for a $599 laptop, and most users should be able to get through a full day without needing to find a charger.
But here’s the catch. The MacBook Neo comes with two USB-C ports but lacks MagSafe charging. As a result, one of the USB-C ports has to handle both data and charging, which can be a bit of a hassle.
Another letdown is the charger included in the box, which can only deliver 20W of power. That means charging the MacBook Neo battery will take longer.
That said, even though the MacBook Air quotes 18 hours of battery life and comes with a 40W adapter, the MacBook Neo’s battery isn’t enough of a downgrade to force an upgrade.
Mathekwini: this is where things fall apart
While the battery and display are decent enough, it’s the ports and connectivity options that might push you away from the M5 MacBook Air.
Both laptops have two USB-C ports, but they are not equal. Because the A18 Pro doesn’t have Thunderbolt support, you won’t get the data transfer speed. The MacBook Neo packs two USB-C ports, one that supports USB 3 speeds and the other is limited to USB 2 speeds. Putting a USB 2 port in a laptop, no matter how affordable, should be a crime. It also means that it will only support one external display.
The MacBook Air M5 has full Thunderbolt 4 ports, which means you get faster external storage, support for multiple external displays, and compatibility with the widest range of accessories and docks.
Apple’s little things slow down
It’s in the small details that Apple has done most of the cost-cutting. The MacBook Neo features a 1080p FaceTime camera, which is nice but not great. The MacBook Air M5 has a 12MP Center Stage camera that can follow you around the frame during video calls.
The Neo packs a dual stereo speaker setup with Spatial Audio. The MacBook Air M5 has a four-speaker system that produces rich and full sound. The base model of the Neo also lacks Touch ID on the keyboard.
You get that with the $699 model. Perhaps the most surprising cost-cutting decision Apple made with the MacBook Neo is the lack of a backlit keyboard, a strange omission that is difficult to understand.
So, you should buy MacBook Neo or MacBook Air
My main concern with recommending the MacBook Neo is its 8GB of RAM, which would make the device feel outdated in just two to three years. Combined with last-generation USB-C ports, the lack of a backlit keyboard, and 60GB/s memory bandwidth, the MacBook Neo becomes hard to recommend.
That being said, I can’t deny that the price point is negligible. If you’re a student, a first-time Mac buyer, someone switching from a Windows or Chromebook budget, or a parent buying a laptop for a child, the MacBook Neo might make sense.
The A18 Pro is fast enough for everything a student or casual user will throw at it, the $499 education price is amazing, and the colors make it feel like a fun buy.
However, if you’re a working professional, content creator, or someone who plans to keep their laptop for five years or more, the MacBook Air M5 is a better investment.
The M5 chip is more powerful under sustained load, the base 16GB RAM is the best in years, the Thunderbolt ports give you real flexibility, MagSafe is really easy, and the 12MP camera is noticeably better.
The $500 price difference may seem significant at first, but when you consider longevity, it’s easy to justify. Better yet, you can get a last generation M3 or M4 MacBook Air for around $700-$800, which is a much better deal than the MacBook Neo. But whether that price difference is worth it depends entirely on what you’re buying the laptop for.
