Low-cost Mac is here! Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) launches Neo starting at just $499 featuring A18 Pro, targeting Windows and Chromebook.

Apple Inc. (AAPL.US) has launched the MacBook Neo priced at $599, marking the company's biggest push into the entry-level laptop market so far, aiming to compete with Windows PC and Chromebook in the budget consumer segment. The price of this new machine is $400 lower than any previous new-generation laptop from Apple Inc., significantly lower than the current price of $1099 for the MacBook Air. The MacBook Neo comes in various colors such as citrus, silver, indigo, and light pink, with Apple Inc. hoping to attract students and a broader consumer base. The MacBook Neo features a 13.0-inch display, making it one of the smallest laptops from Apple Inc., while the MacBook Air has a 13.6-inch screen. It is worth noting that this product is the first Mac computer to use the A18 Pro chip, previously used in iPhone processors, marking the first time Apple Inc. has applied smartphone chips to the Mac product line. John Ternus, Apple Inc.'s senior vice president of hardware engineering, said that the MacBook Neo was "built from the ground up with the goal of allowing more users to experience the Mac at a lower price." The base version offers 256GB of storage space for $599; the $699 upgraded version doubles the storage and adds Touch ID fingerprint recognition for login and payment verification. Education users can also enjoy a $100 discount, bringing the entry price down to $499. Apple Inc. stated that the product is available for pre-order on Wednesday, with shipping starting on March 11 and sales in stores. In terms of performance, the MacBook Neo features 8GB of memory, a 6-core CPU, and a 5-core GPU, comparable to the iPhone 16 Pro released in 2024. The device has a battery life of about 16 hours, slightly lower than the latest MacBook Air with an M5 chip that has an 18-hour battery life. The screen brightness can reach up to 500 nits, weighing 2.7 pounds, the same as the 13-inch Air. Despite being positioned as an entry-level product, the MacBook Neo features an aluminum alloy body, a full keyboard and trackpad, and supports WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 6, and a 1080P FaceTime camera. The device provides two USB-C ports and a headphone jack, and comes with a 20-watt charger. Apple Inc. stated that the performance of the MacBook Neo is sufficient for daily tasks such as web browsing, document processing, image editing, and video conferencing. Although it uses iPhone chips, the device runs the same macOS operating system as other Mac computers and is compatible with Mac and iPhone apps. Compared to low-end Chromebooks and Windows PCs priced between $200 and $600 on the market, the MacBook Neo's price is slightly higher, but Apple Inc. emphasizes that its design, configuration, and overall experience are significantly more high-end. The company also claims that the device's speed in artificial intelligence calculations can reach three times that of some competing PCs. Apple Inc. hopes to attract new users to its ecosystem with this more competitively priced Mac, thereby driving sales of products such as the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. Earlier, Apple Inc.'s Mac business performed poorly in the holiday quarter, with sales down 6.7% year-on-year to $8.39 billion, below analysts' expectations of over $9 billion. The release of the MacBook Neo is part of Apple Inc.'s recent intensive product updates. This Monday, the company launched the iPhone 17e and the iPad Air with the M4 chip, and on Tuesday, it released updated versions of the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Studio Display monitor. In addition, Apple Inc. also plans to launch touch screen Mac products later this year, further expanding its computer product line.