MacBook Neo: Here’s everything reviewers didn’t like

We already have I reviewed (and loved) the MacBook Neothe newest member of Apple’s laptop family. Its positives include that $599 price (or $499 with educational pricing open to all), fun colors such as citrus, and a powerful A18 Pro chipset. And this feeling is almost unanimous among technical critics.

Yet for all the adulation for Apple’s most affordable laptop, there are downsides. These aren’t necessarily flaws: Apple had to choose what to include and what not to include in order to make its low-cost MacBook a reality. The positives outweigh the negatives, but it’s still important that consumers know what they’re getting into. Here’s why the Neo might not be your cup of tea.

Only 8 GB of RAM

Most outlets, from Mashable to The edge, pointed out that the MacBook Neo only comes with 8GB of RAM. No matter which model you buy, it is not possible to upgrade your MacBook Neo’s memory or upgrade it later. For most general use cases (writing documents, browsing the Internet), 8 GB will be more than enough. But if they need to multitask – or do CPU-intensive video editing, for example – users will likely feel the need for a few extra GB.

Few ports in the storm

The MacBook Neo is seriously lacking in ports. As our review notes, the MacBook Neo doesn’t have a Thunderbolt 4 port, meaning it can only offer transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps. Compare that with 40 Gbps for the latest MacBook Air.

As for the Neo’s two USB-C ports? Well, like Macmonde written, they are not exactly equal. One is for data transfer and displays at 10Gbps, while the other is just a 480Mbps port, which should be used primarily for charging purposes.

Single-core process: Good. Multi-core processes? Ehh.

The MacBook Neo and its A18 Pro chip are surprisingly faster in many single-core processes than even the most powerful M-series chipsets. 9to5MacIn benchmark tests, the Neo was faster than the MacBook Air M1, M2, and even M3 laptops when used for tasks like web browsing and basic photo editing.

However, the MacBook Neo is noticeably slower when it comes to more complex use cases like video exporting and AI processing that require multiple cores. 9to5Mac found that the MacBook Neo was only slightly faster than the more than 5-year-old M1 MacBook Air and slower than the rest of the M-series chips.

Want to lose weight? Consider the MacBook Air

Bloomberg, as well as our colleagues from CNET, make an interesting point. Even though the MacBook Neo is small thanks to its 13-inch screen, it is still small. thicker than the MacBook Air. This makes sense: When you pay extra for an Air, you’re paying for a slim build. But that means the Neo isn’t as easy to transport as you might think. (The Neo and the 13-inch MacBook Air both weigh the same, around 2.7 pounds.)

CNET also found that the MacBook Neo’s battery life didn’t last as long as some other MacBooks, including the MacBook Air.

The base model of the MacBook Neo may not be enough

As many reviewers have noted, the $599 model only comes with 256GB of storage space and doesn’t have Touch ID. These days, 256 GB of storage space isn’t much. System data will take up some of this space from the start; Once the apps are installed, there may not be much left for documents and downloads. In the meantime, Touch ID is really handy; this removes the need to enter most passwords.

Apple offers an upgraded MacBook Neo model that doubles the storage space to 512GB and includes Touch ID, for an additional $100. But that takes away the appeal of the MacBook Neo’s base model’s extremely low price.

As CNET points out, it appears Apple sent most early reviewers the 512GB model with Touch ID. This indicates which MacBook Neo model Apple considers standard.

Bottom line: The MacBook Neo seems like a powerful computer at an incredible price as long as you use the device for basic daily tasks. In more advanced use cases, this may still meet your needs, but we recommend taking a look at what else Apple has to offer, just to be sure you’re buying the right MacBook for your needs.