The $599 Apple MacBook Neo

Overall Decent, Apart From The 8GB Of RAM

The MacBook Neo is a very different beast from Apple’s usual products, instead of packing it full of features and charging a hefty premium they’ve scaled back the luxury and are selling it for $599, $699 if you want 512GB of storage and Touch ID.  You can also get an educational discount, if you qualify, which drops the price an extra $100.  That puts it up against a part of the market which we don’t usually see Apple in.  The choice of Windows laptops at that price is vast and confusing, you will find plenty of options but the difference of one or two characters in the model number will make the difference between a usable laptop and one with a pathetic battery or a lousy screen.

That fact could really help the MacBook Neo since customers will know exactly what they are getting and don’t run the risk of getting a lemon.  Ars Technica were impressed with the overall performance of the A18 Pro processor in it’s new home, you aren’t going to be impressed by the Cinebench performance but for day to day computing it is capable of providing a good experience.  The 2408×1506 screen beats any Windows laptop at this price point, and while the speakers aren’t amazing they are far better than what you’ll find on anything but high end gaming laptops.

It’s not all good news, for instance it only offers two USB-C ports, not Thunderbolt, and only one offers 10 Gbps USB 3 with support for displays, the other is a mere 480Mbs USB 2 port.  As well the keyboard is not backlit, something that has been standard on all Apple laptops for a very long time.  Check out the full review for more.