- Apple has finally made its more affordable MacBook official
- It is powered by Apple’s A18 Pro chip
- This new MacBook starts at $599 / £599 / AU$899
After countless rumors, Apple has finally made its new entry-level MacBook Neo official. The iPhone 17e and iPad Air with M4 might have kicked off Apple’s week of launches, but this new $599 / £599 / AU$899 MacBook is likely to be the one that gets people talking.
As expected, this MacBook does not have an M-series chip from Apple, but is instead powered by an A18 Pro chip. Yes, the Apple-made silicon that first debuted in an iPhone is now inside a Mac, running macOS.
It most closely resembles Apple’s classic MacBook Air with a wedge design—a look I’m still quite fond of—and this laptop comes in a range of four sweet colors (blush, indigo, silver and a “fresh new citrus”). The invitations to the Apple Experience on March 4, 2026 probably hinted at these colors.
The MacBook Neo comes with two USB-C ports, a 1080p FaceTime HD camera and a headphone jack. The screen is a 13-inch Liquid Retina display with 500 nits of brightness, and Apple claims a 16-hour battery life, just two less than the new MacBook Air. The MacBook Neo also has a Multi-Touch Trackpad and Magic Keyboard, although unlike the MacBook Air this is not backlit.
The $599 / £599 / AU$899 version comes with 256GB of storage and 8GB of RAM and no Touch ID (with a lock button instead), while the $699 / £699 / AU$1,099 version has 512GB of storage with 8GB of RAM and Touch ID.
So what’s missing?
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The MacBook Neo packs a lot into its $599 / £599 / AU$899 base price, so what corners has Apple had to cut?
First, the cheaper model has no Touch ID on the keyboard – it only comes with the $699 / £699 / AU$1,099 512GB version. There are also no 1TB or higher storage options, just 256GB and 512GB options.
The absence of a backlit keyboard may be one of the bigger practical limitations, making it harder for students (its primary target market) to type away late at night. There’s also no MagSafe charging and no Apple N1 chip (which is now standard on Apple’s latest MacBooks), meaning you only get Wi-Fi 6E.
Elsewhere, the 1080p FaceTime camera doesn’t have Center Stage, so it can’t pan around to follow you as you move, and in the UK and Europe the laptop doesn’t ship with a charger or cable either.
While these are all nice to have, the MacBook Neo certainly has its charms, especially in the bright colors, and is likely to be a strong Chromebook rival at that starting price of $599 / £599 / AU$899. Considering it starts at $499 / £499 / AU$749 for education, we can see this being a popular laptop in 2026.
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