The MacBook Neo makes the rest of Apple’s lineup very difficult to justify

Ever since the $599 MacBook Neo was announced a little over a week ago, I’ve been wondering: does this negate the value proposition of the other non-Pro laptops in Apple’s lineup? It’s an interesting question, because even at its most affordable price point, the MacBook Neo still manages to feel premium.

After trying out the laptop after its launch on Wednesday, I find myself even more confused as to how this thing fits into Apple’s lineup — but not in a bad way.

The MacBook Neo makes several integrations

At $599 (plus $499 for students), the MacBook Neo really packs all the features you’d expect from an Apple product. Despite being a “cheap MacBook,” you can’t really tell from the outside. It has an incredibly well-built aluminum chassis, a glass display, an excellent keyboard, and it’s still very bright.

The main thing you’ll notice missing compared to other MacBooks is the force touch trackpad. The MacBook Neo uses a traditional click mechanism, but it still clicks everywhere, unlike the old keyboard trackpads on pre-2015 MacBooks. Additionally, if you stick with the base model with 256GB of storage, you’ll lose Touch ID. For an extra $100, you can add Touch ID and double the internal storage.

To put it simply, Apple didn’t have to go hard. Even the M1 MacBook Air in 2020, which people often want to compare it to, didn’t have a 500 nit display. It was limited to 400 nits, and that was the limit that many expected to appear in the MacBook Neo, but Apple decided not to. In my last 72 hours or so of using the MacBook Neo, I’ve been blown away by how lost it feels compared to my MacBook Air.

When you think of the MacBook Neo, two similar Apple products immediately come to mind: the MacBook Air, which previously sat at the bottom of Apple’s lineup, and the iPad Air + Magic Keyboard.

Does it break other Apple products?

The MacBook Air now sits at $1099 after its M5 refresh, which puts it $400 more than the MacBook Neo with 512GB and Touch ID.

Clearly, the MacBook Air still has some work to do. For one thing, you get 16GB of RAM in the MacBook Air, so if you’re a heavy multitasker, the Air will probably make more sense. The MacBook Air has a P3 display, which will be important if you are doing color work. The MacBook Air also offers a Center Stage camera, so if you want your FaceTime calls to feel dynamic, that’s something the MacBook Air offers.

Actually, the MacBook Air offers some premium features over the MacBook Neo, and if you have it in your budget, it will still be worth buying.

That said, not everyone is a very savvy consumer. Many bought a MacBook Air simply because they wanted a Mac and liked laptops, so the MacBook Air was the cheapest option. Now, the MacBook Neo is a cheaper option, and it comes in some attractive colors like Blush, Indigo, and Citrus to attract buyers to it.

I have a feeling that many people who might have bought a MacBook Air before may now be considering a MacBook Neo. Both come in at 2.7 pounds and are the same size, so they both fit about the same.

Another good thing I noticed about the MacBook Neo in my tests: it doesn’t get hot. My MacBook Air will sometimes get warm during certain tasks, such as editing a photo. On the MacBook Neo, I didn’t feel any warmth at all – it was completely cold. The A18 Pro does wonders for the MacBook chassis.

iPad Air vs MacBook Neo

The iPad Air + Magic keyboard is a very interesting argument. The iPad Air starts at $599 (although it usually sells for $100 less, sometimes even more), and the iPad Air Magic Keyboard usually costs $269. Let’s just call it $800 on average, counting discounts on the iPad Air.

At $800, the iPad Air setup comes with less storage than any MacBook Neo, at 128GB. It comes with a much smaller 11-inch screen, and iPadOS instead of macOS. Sure, you have an M4 chip instead of the A18 Pro, but for the workflows you’ll be doing on the iPad, the M4 chip excels dramatically.

None of those things are really shocking – but the reason I bring this up is that the iPad Air used to be positioned as Apple’s “budget” laptop setup compared to the MacBook Air, and now the MacBook Neo hits that mark without a hitch. Even if you want to compare the budget of the iPad + Magic Keyboard Folio, that setup costs $598 total, just a dollar shy of what a MacBook Neo would cost.

In short, the argument of iPads being the budget Apple laptops is completely dead. If you value Apple Pencil iPads, that’s still going to be valuable – but to be honest I find it hard to imagine why anyone would want to bother using an iPad or iPad Air as a hybrid laptop when you can just buy a MacBook Neo.

Finish it

Overall, the MacBook Neo feels incredibly disruptive to Apple’s lineup. In the short term, I feel that Apple should adjust some of their prices, or make their products even better.

For example, does the basic iPad Magic Keyboard really need to cost $249? The iPad itself only costs $349, and the fact that this setup costs just $1 less than a MacBook Neo is ridiculous.

With the iPad Air, I think the iPad itself should see a price cut, or get some upgrades to make it stand out more. The 120Hz ProMotion display and Face ID would be good places to start.

Finally, the MacBook Air should receive an additional premium. It would be nice to see it get a Tandem OLED screen like the iPad Pro, even if it meant the MacBook Air starts at a higher price point like $1299. I saw a future version of the MacBook Neo with a 1TB/16GB trim priced at $999 to fill the shoes of the ~$1000 MacBook Air.

What do you think of the MacBook Neo launch? Do you find it as disturbing as I do? Let us know in the comments.

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