Apple launched the MacBook Neo this Wednesday, the company’s most affordable model. The MacBook Neo is the first…
Apple launched the MacBook Neo this Wednesday, the company’s most affordable model.
The MacBook Neo is Apple’s first laptop to run a chip commonly used in the iPhone and starts at $599. It’s a new attempt to attract Windows and Chromebook customers and drive growth, as component shortages continue to plague the broader market.
John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, described the MacBook Neo as “all-new” and said it was built “from the ground up” during an event in New York on Wednesday.
The iPhone is Apple’s biggest source of revenue, followed by its services business and its IT division. wearables. However, its Mac computers are crucial to ensuring that iPhone and Apple Watch users remain integrated into Apple’s ecosystem of products and services. Apple is deviating from its usual strategy by targeting price-conscious consumers, a segment it had until now largely ceded to PC and Chromebook makers.
Expanding to new audiences could be crucial as the industry faces an ongoing memory shortage that some analysts say will decimate the affordable laptop market.
Compared to other Apple MacBooks, the Neo has a smaller screen, less memory, and is available in brighter colors, including a new “citrus” yellow.
But the main factor that sets it apart from other Apple MacBooks, besides its lower price, is that it runs on Apple’s A18 Pro processor, a chip similar to the one in the iPhone 16 Pro. It’s the first time Apple has used one of its mobile chips for a laptop.
Apple’s ability to run its Mac software on a phone chip demonstrates the advantage of having full control over its hardware and software, said Jitesh Ubrani, research director at International Data Corporation. PC makers, on the other hand, typically design and manufacture their laptops, but use Microsoft’s Windows operating system or Google’s Chrome OS (Microsoft is a small player in the PC hardware business with its Surface laptops).
“They’re taking a chip that normally runs a lightweight operating system and running a heavier one,” he said. “And I think that says a lot about Apple’s ability to optimize.”
Apple is far from being the largest computer supplier in the world. By contrast, that title belongs to Lenovo, which accounted for 27.2% of the market at the end of 2025, compared to Apple’s 9.4%, according to Gartner data.
But Apple’s approach to the market has also been decidedly different from that of its competitors in the PC market. Until now, MacBooks have largely been more expensive and lack a touchscreen option like most PCs.
The MacBook Neo is an attempt to address at least one of those shortcomings. Although it doesn’t have a touchscreen, it could appeal to consumers who don’t want to spend more than $1,000 on a MacBook Air or Pro but need something more like a laptop than an iPad.
Ubrani said he expects the new MacBook to be popular among college students and young adults with fewer resources available, while Gartner analyst Autumn Stanish says it could boost Apple’s presence in classrooms, where Chromebooks tend to be more popular.
Growing demand for the type of memory that powers AI data centers has meant fewer components for consumer products.
Gartner expects PC prices to rise 17% in 2026, while International Data Corporation estimates PC sales will decline 11.3% this year.
Releasing a new affordable MacBook now, before those price increases occur, could give Apple an advantage. While the market as a whole is expected to shrink, Apple will not suffer sharp declines because it is expected to gain market share, according to Ubrani. “This increase in participation is mainly due to this device,” he stated.
Apple also introduced the new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro this week, as well as new laptop chips. The MacBook Neo launches on March 11.
The-CNN-Wire
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