| Processor: | Apple A18 Pro CPU | Storage: | 256 GB SSD |
| Graphics: | Apple A18 Pro GPU | Screen: | 2408×1506 IPS |
| Memory: | 8 GB | Tested battery life: | 14 hours |
The MacBook Neo is the best laptop for people who spend most of their time using an internet browser or working with popular Mac, iPhone, or iPad apps.
Apple’s budget machine is quite capable, and we were able to browse about a dozen tabs, listen to music on Spotify, write in the Notes app, and send messages on iMessage, with some processing headroom to do one or two additional things.
The MacBook Neo is also surprisingly capable for lightweight gaming, especially the kinds of games that kids like to play, including Roblox, Minecraft Java, and a couple of versions of The Sims. We tested 50 games available on Macs, and more than 35 of them ran well enough that we would happily play them on the Neo.
But the MacBook Neo also has some specific limitations, especially for people who keep dozens of tabs open over a long period of time or are constantly running out of storage space, as well as for people who want to do more than just basic, everyday tasks. We also can’t predict how long its less-capable processor will be able to keep up with apps and games that arrive in the future. We recommend the Air for most people who need a MacBook, but we plan to long-term test the Neo to see how it holds up over time.
It’s capable of browsing the web, handling light work, and running iPadOS apps. The MacBook Neo is aimed squarely at people who don’t need a lot of processing power from their computers, and in those situations it does its job well. It can easily handle 12 to 15 browser tabs and a few apps at the same time — but not much more. When you overload the system’s memory, individual apps start to lag, Chrome tabs load more slowly, and the browser can’t switch between them immediately. Otherwise, the Neo does a good job of handling its limited memory, and we weren’t able to crash the system completely (except when its storage was full). The Neo, like all Macs, can also run many iOS and iPadOS apps, since its processor is the same as that of the iPhone 16 Pro.
And it runs a large handful of games, too. We tested more than 50 games on the MacBook Neo, including Roblox, Minecraft Java, The Sims 4, Stardew Valley, Balatro, Vampire Survivors, and Hello Kitty Island Adventure. Those titles and many others (36 in total) ran without issue. Some, like War Thunder and Cult of the Lamb, ran well only after we dropped their resolution to the lowest possible settings. More visually intensive or fast-paced games, like Dota 2, Rust, and Path of Exile, ran so poorly it was difficult to imagine having a good time.
Its display is just as good as that of the MacBook Air. The MacBook Neo’s screen is slightly lower resolution than on the more expensive MacBook Air, but you’d be hard-pressed to tell without comparing them side by side. The Neo’s screen also gets just as bright as the Air’s, reaching 500 nits, which is bright enough for use outside. Oddly, the Neo is dead-on accurate in the sRGB color space, nearly as good as the MacBook Pro in its sRGB color profile.
It has just enough ports. You might have to get used to the MacBook Neo’s mismatched USB-C ports; one is a faster, 10 Gbps USB 3 port, and the other is a 20x slower 480 Mbps USB 2 port. Apple has made new notifications for these two ports to remind you that a faster port is available if you plug a high-speed device into the slower port. The MacBook Neo also has a headphone jack.
Its webcam and microphones are good enough. The Neo’s 1080p camera and microphone are more than sufficient for online learning, Zoom meetings, or FaceTime conversations with friends. And unlike with many budget Windows laptops, the Neo’s speakers get quite loud, easily filling a small room without becoming overly harsh or shrill.
It has a familiar, great Mac keyboard. The Neo’s keyboard uses the same kind of scissor-switch keys as those of the MacBook Air and Pro. The Neo’s keys lack the backlights of more expensive MacBooks, but I typed much of this review on a MacBook Neo late in the evening and in the dark, and I can report surviving the incident. However, only the 512 GB version of the Neo has TouchID, Apple’s fingerprint scanner for unlocking the laptop and verifying your identity for security checks and purchases.
Its battery lasts about 14 hours on a single charge. In our battery test that simulates continuous web browsing, the Neo’s battery lasted far longer than an average workday or school day. That said, we recommend turning down the screen brightness for the longest battery life, since the Neo’s display gets especially bright and can use a lot of power.
You can use an external display, but just one. The MacBook Neo can connect to one monitor at a time, which is fine for most people. If you prefer multiple monitors, the MacBook Air is a better fit for multitasking.
It’s about the size and weight of the 13-inch MacBook Air. The MacBook Neo weighs about 2.7 pounds, the same as the Air and in the same weight class as many thin-and-light Windows laptops. It easily fits in a backpack or a large shoulder bag.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
It’s seriously limited by 8 GB of memory. The MacBook Neo is great for light work, which we found is about a dozen to 20 Chrome tabs alongside a few apps like Spotify, Messages, Microsoft Word, or WhatsApp. But when the Neo hits its memory limit, performance starts to stutter in whichever app is exceeding the laptop’s RAM, and loading the tab takes an extra second or two to. As it becomes even more overloaded, those stutters happen more regularly. If you don’t often pare down your tabs or apps, the Neo will stutter and lag more and more, though it will continue to function — as long as you have at least a few gigabytes of storage left on your drive.
If you run out of storage, it’s much more likely to crash. Because the MacBook Neo has only 8 GB of memory, Apple has engineered it to aggressively use its storage to make up the difference. This makes the Neo better than many other 8 GB devices at multitasking, but when that storage is full, its small amount of memory quickly becomes insufficient, and the laptop starts to crash. This is preventable, especially if you know storage is the problem — just delete some data. But it could be a serious issue in some situations, such as when you’re trying to load an enormous iCloud library onto the Neo.
It comes with only limited storage options. The MacBook Neo offers only 256 GB and 512 GB options, which can easily be overwhelmed by some people’s iCloud collections of photos and videos. If your iCloud library is larger than the Neo can handle, we recommend managing the Neo’s storage using Apple’s tools in the System Settings app, on the Storage tab; this allows you to easily identify large files, which you can then move to an external drive and delete off the Neo.
We don’t know how long it will be “good enough.” The MacBook Neo is a very good value, offering a real Apple experience for nearly half the cost of the MacBook Air. But its limits are apparent already, and you can bet that the apps people will use and the way they use browsers will change and become more demanding over time. Based on our experience with similar processors, we expect the Neo to last at least two to three years before annual operating system updates and new software make it feel dated.
Touch ID is available only on the 512 GB version. The 256 GB MacBook Neo doesn’t have Touch ID. Instead, it has a small lock button that enables the lock screen when held down.
