Apple MacBook Neo 13-inch (A18 Pro) review

Full review

The MacBook Neo is Apple's attempt at a genuinely affordable Mac, and it largely succeeds. Instead of an M-series chip, it uses the A18 Pro from the iPhone 16 Pro, a six-core processor that should feel responsive for browsing, writing, streaming and light photo editing, though it will not match the M-series chips in the Air when every core is busy.

The 13-inch screen is a highlight: Apple rates it at 500 nits with a 2408 x 1506 resolution. The aluminium body is stiff, there is no fan to make noise, and Apple claims up to 16 hours of video streaming and 11 hours of web browsing from the 36.5 Wh battery. It comes in four colours: Silver, Blush, Citrus and Indigo.

The savings show in a few places. Touch ID is offered only with one keyboard option, which Apple pairs with the 512GB model. Every model has 8GB of memory, which is fixed for life and fills up quickly with heavy multitasking. One of the two USB-C ports runs at old USB 2 speeds, and only one external monitor is supported. Apple's spec page does not mention a keyboard backlight, so check before you buy if you type in the dark.

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