Long expected and now finally official, Apple has announced the MacBook Neo, the brand’s first entirely new laptop in years.
Notably, it’s also Apple’s cheapest laptop by far. The starting configuration with 256GB of internal storage costs $899 in Australia (or $749 for students accessing education pricing). For comparison, the new M5 MacBook Air starts at $1,799.
But in keeping the costs down, the MacBook Neo includes a non-upgradeable 8GB of RAM, and a maximum of 512GB built-in storage. Only the 512GB model, priced at $1,099, includes a Touch ID input on its keyboard, leaving the base model without fingerprint-enabled unlocking.
Apple’s new laptop also comes in one size: 13 inches, with a 2408 x 1506 display that covers the sRGB colour range. Advertised as lasting up to 16 hours of video streaming on a single charge, the Neo has a pared-back array of ports, too. On the left is one USB-C 3.0 port, supporting one external 4K display, joined by a slower USB-C 2.0 port.
As widely tipped beforehand, the Neo runs on an A18 Pro chipset, the same hardware used in the iPhone 16 Pro range, instead of Apple’s M-series of laptop and iPad processors. According to Apple, the result is up to 50 per cent faster everyday performance than a comparable laptop running on an Intel Core Ultra 5.
MacBook Neo pre-orders are live now, with the laptops arriving in Australia on 11 March. It comes in four colours: Silver, Indigo, Blush, and Citrus.
The Neo’s announcement comes hot off the heels of a week of Apple announcements, including the aforementioned MacBook Air, upgraded MacBook Pros, new Studio Displays, and the iPhone 17e. Along with the company’s high-end devices, Apple now appears ready and willing to compete with Chromebooks and affordable Windows-based machines.
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