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Daring Fireball
Daring Fireball: The MacBook Neo
May the MacBook Neo live so long that its name becomes inapt.
John Gruber of Daring Fireball has posted his review of the MacBook Neo, Apple's all new, colorful, and surprisingly affordable laptop. Starting at only $599, or $499 for the education market, you get a surprisingly capable machine.
I’ve been testing a citrus-colored $700 MacBook Neo2 — the model with Touch ID and 512 GB storage — since last week... I’ve been using it for as much of my work as possible. I expected this to go well, but in fact, the experience has vastly exceeded my expectations. Christ almighty I don’t even have as many complaints about running MacOS 26 Tahoe (which the Neo requires) as I thought I would.
That's high praise coming from Gruber, who is a well-known curmudgeon capable of excoriating lousy products in his reviews. When John posts a review, I know that I'll be getting his unvarnished opinion. This has gotten him in trouble with Apple recently, but its worth it.
But just using the Neo, without any consideration that it’s memory limited, I haven’t noticed a single hitch. I’m not quitting apps I otherwise wouldn’t quit, or closing Safari tabs I wouldn’t otherwise close. I’m just working — with an even dozen apps open as I type this sentence — and everything feels snappy.
It seems like the Neo is the new default option for everyday, casual computer users that primarily browse the web, check their email, and use built-in apps like Pages, Keynote, etc. It leaves me wondering what the purpose of the MacBook Air is in a world where the Neo exists. Gruber seems to have a similar perspective.
If I had my druthers, Apple would make a new svelte ultralight MacBook. Not instead of the Neo, but in addition to the Neo. Apple’s inconsistent use of the name “Air” makes this complicated, but the MacBook Neo is obviously akin to the iPhone 17e; the MacBook Air is akin to the iPhone 17 (the default model for most people); the MacBook Pros are akin to the iPhone 17 Pros. I wish Apple would make a MacBook that’s akin to the iPhone Air — crazy thin and surprisingly performant.
My preferred situation would be three MacBooks:
- MacBook Neo -- Inexpensive and capable enough for most casual home users.
- MacBook Pro -- For business users and prosumers.
- MacBook Air -- "crazy thin and surprisingly performant," just like Gruber suggests.
Arguably, the MacBook Air should remain as the premium choice for home users, but I'd prefer them to just spec-up the Neo to fit the entire $600-$1600 price range and repurpose the Air name.
