In summary:
- Macworld analyzes Apple’s new $599 MacBook Neo, examining whether its low price justifies the 8GB RAM configuration that critics question.
- The device targets casual users, students, and iPhone owners seeking seamless ecosystem integration rather than high-end specifications or performance.
- Compared to similarly priced Windows laptops and iPads with keyboards, the MacBook Neo offers superior build quality, performance, and storage capacity.
Apple announced an all-new MacBook this week at a starting price of just $599, and as you might have guessed, everyone has opinions about it. If the social media feeds are to be believed, the most common critique is that it’s not actually a good deal because it’s slow trash garbage with only 8GB of RAM and will be obsolete and useless in just a couple of years.
Obviously, Apple’s not going to make a Mac laptop as good as the MacBook Air at nearly half the price. But are the compromises really dealbreakers? Let’s dig in.
‘There’s not enough RAM’
Central to most complaints is that an A18 Pro with only 8GB of RAM is going to provide a bad user experience. Sometimes that hot take is carefully hedged—sure it’s fine now, but in a couple of years it won’t be able to run the latest AI models, or whatever!
If you’re the kind of user who knows the complete specs of your computer and considers such details carefully, then the MacBook Neo is not for you.
It’s not what’s inside the MacBook Neo that counts.
Michael Simon / Foundry
There are millions of people whose entire laptop use consists of email, web browsing, online shopping, reading news, watching YouTube videos, and scrolling through social media. The closest they come to creating anything is trimming the end off a video or cropping some photos. They often don’t update to the latest OS release and aren’t really concerned about it. They’re totally happy with their 4-year old laptop, and aren’t really sure what kind of CPU it has or how much RAM it’s got.
They went to Best Buy or some other big box store, poked around at the laptops on display, and picked one that was inexpensive and looked good. Users like this are everywhere, and they rarely end up with a Mac because the starting prices are usually $1,000 or more.
The MacBook Neo is for them. And for eighth graders who need to type reports. And for grandkids to buy for their grandparents who don’t understand all this new computer stuff, but the HP laptop they used since 2010 won’t start up anymore.
For those target markets, the MacBook Neo is going to be more than fast enough. We know this because M1 and M2 MacBook Airs that sold with only 8GB of RAM are still doing all that basic stuff just fine. And yeah, maybe in a couple of years they won’t be able to run the latest big AI models locally. So much of the AI stuff is moving to the cloud anyway, and it’s just not necessary for the everyday tasks these users are spending their time on.
I’m not so sure a $599 Chromebook is going to handle the latest AI models in 2028, either.
‘Just get an iPad and keyboard’
I can’t believe how many people suggested that an iPad with a keyboard/trackpad cover would be a better deal.
The most basic iPad with the Magic Keyboard Folio is $598, almost exactly the price of the MacBook Neo. Only it’s smaller (11 inches), slower (A16), and has half the storage (128GB).
Foundry
Sure, iPads have their own strengths—mainly cameras and touchscreens—but getting iPad hardware that is comparable to the MacBook Neo definitely costs more.
And importantly, iPads run iPadOS, not macOS. Everyone who wants a touch-first tablet already has an iPad. MacBook Neo is for people who want a Mac. They want to run Mac software.
‘You can get a better PC for the less’
What about them? You can definitely get a Windows laptop or a Chromebook for this price. Or less. Much less!
Similarly-priced Windows laptops are generally bigger, with thicker, heavier bodies. They feel cheap and plasticky. They have slow processors, RAM, and storage. It’s not uncommon to find better specs in some places—more storage, more RAM, larger screens—but you’re unlikely to find them all. And compromises abound, too.
But they don’t run well, or feel good, or look good. Put a $600 Windows laptop side-by-side with a MacBook Neo, and it just feels cheap. And do you have any idea how much bloatware and crud you get on a sub-$1,000 Windows laptop these days? Why do you think the price is so low?
There aren’t many $599 Windows PCs that won’t look cheap next to the Neo.
Foundry
There are a billion iPhone users out there who would enjoy a computer that syncs all their messages, photos, and bookmarks with ease. They want to copy something on their laptop and paste it on their phone. They want to use their phone as a webcam. They want Find My on their computer. And they don’t want to mess with a bunch of utilities and third-party software to make it happen.
People don’t buy Macs just because of how the benchmarks or specs compare to a Windows machine of the same price. They buy them because they’re Macs. Just as people buy Windows desktops because of the games they want to run, people buy Macs because of the Mac software they want to run.
The price is the feature
One could compare the MacBook Neo to other products all day. (It’s $100 less than the wheels for the Mac Pro!) To do so is to miss the point.
The point is that it’s a Mac laptop that is hundreds of dollars cheaper than any Mac laptop has ever been, and it’s going to do all the “basic laptop stuff” just fine. It opens up the possibility of getting a Mac to an absolutely huge market that simply wasn’t reachable before.
It’s the basic MacBook. The first MacBook. The trial MacBook. The you-don’t-have-to-be-too-careful-with-it MacBook.
The RAM, and ports, and display aren’t the features. The price is the feature.
Author: Jason Cross, Senior Editor, Macworld
Jason has written about technology for more than 25 years - first in the gaming press, then focusing on enthusiast PCs and general technology. He enjoys learning how complicated technology works and explaining it in a way anyone can understand.