maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
I didn't realize how much I relied on one, until I had a laptop (thinkpad) with a poor backlit, which is unusual, given thinkpad's reputation regarding awesome keyboards. It is a great keyboard, just bad backlighting.
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Initial NEO thoughts
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dmccombs
macrumors 65816
So which has a better quality screen, the iPad Mini 6/7 or the Macbook Neo? Obviously the Neo is bigger, but which provides a better quality image (color, reflectivity, scrolling, etc)?
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
I think the products are so different, that its probably not worthwhile trying to compare them.
dmccombs
macrumors 65816
I'm just trying to compare the screen quality. I have owned the ipad mini 6 and am using it as a point of reference. Since you don't know my use case, priorities, or wants, its probably not cool telling me what I want or what I should compare. I just asked a simple question hoping for some feedback on the question, not help validating the question. Thanks... 🤷🏽
I'm the opposite when it comes to backlit keyboards. I have never had one on a laptop. I do have a Logitech MX Keys Mini with backlight but it is turned off.
I can see the lack of a backlit keyboard being a negative for those that are use to having it.
I can see the lack of a backlit keyboard being a negative for those that are use to having it.
I can't answer your question concerning how the Neo compares to the iPad mini 6/7.
I did compare the Neo to my 2018 iPad Pro and M3 iPad Air. I can't tell much, if any, difference.
But everyone's eyes are different. Some might not see much of a difference while others see a big difference.
dmccombs
macrumors 65816
Andy_2341
macrumors 6502a
To answer, I compared the neo to the mini 7.
Obviously, the ipad supports some things being a touch first display, like the fingerprint coating and apple pencil.
But display to display, the neo is only sRGB vs P3 on the mini, theyre both 500 nits, the ipad is higher ppi, both 60hz, and both liquid retina. In the iPad world, the Neo is equal to the iPad 11th gen. The display on both is good. The neo is not bad at all by means, and much better than similarly priced PCs. If I had the option last year I would 100% have bought a Neo to replace my ipad mini 6 instead of a MBA. The screen is great for anything but very color specific work or high refresh rate gaming.
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dmccombs
macrumors 65816
Andy_2341
macrumors 6502a
I think I'd want one of each of those two colors. 😂
On the one hand, I really liked Citrus from the get-go but then looking at the keyboards, I really like the deeper blue color of the blue on the Indigo. Luckily for my pocketbook, I can't justify either Neo, since I already have an M4 MBP and an M2 MBA. My point is that both colors look wonderful. Can't wait to see them "in the flesh" so to speak, likely at the local Best Buy.
JohnnyQuest
macrumors 68000
Just received my Silver 512GB today - I love this little thing. It's going to be a secondary device to my MBP, throw it in a bag for travel, working around the city, etc. but it's absolutely perfect for that. Can't wait to take it on a plane next week!
Also re: color, I really loved the citrus color but it leaned a tad yellow imo and I was worried I'd grow sick of it quick. Easy solution for the silver - change the wallpaper to the green one that comes standard on the citrus and it casts a nice hue on the keyboard
Also re: color, I really loved the citrus color but it leaned a tad yellow imo and I was worried I'd grow sick of it quick. Easy solution for the silver - change the wallpaper to the green one that comes standard on the citrus and it casts a nice hue on the keyboard
jaysabol
macrumors member
I'm the old disabled guy on Social Security that posted in this thread earlier. I saved up $600 and was just about to order the base Indigo Neo when an unexpected windfall came in the mail. It was a refund from the local hospital for $107. I reposted it and bumped up my order to the 512GB model.
It arrived this afternoon. Every picture I had seen of the Indigo model looked different. My God, it's beautiful! Slate Blue. And it's rock solid. One thing I noticed is that nowhere on or inside the case does it say "MacBook Neo". It's plain in that sense. I use a mouse but used the trackpad to set things up. It's solid. The screen is nice and bright and the colors vibrant. I checked viewing angles from the sides. Not bad. I love the feel of the keyboard and I have no trouble distinguishing the letters on the keys. I'm glad I was able to get the 512GB model - I love Touch ID.
The only third party software I have on it so far is my Epson software. Because my need are light, I don't expect to add a lot of software. They still include iWork. Sound is very good, surprising!
I didn't know if I was ever going to be able to buy another new Mac, so this paradise for me!
It arrived this afternoon. Every picture I had seen of the Indigo model looked different. My God, it's beautiful! Slate Blue. And it's rock solid. One thing I noticed is that nowhere on or inside the case does it say "MacBook Neo". It's plain in that sense. I use a mouse but used the trackpad to set things up. It's solid. The screen is nice and bright and the colors vibrant. I checked viewing angles from the sides. Not bad. I love the feel of the keyboard and I have no trouble distinguishing the letters on the keys. I'm glad I was able to get the 512GB model - I love Touch ID.
The only third party software I have on it so far is my Epson software. Because my need are light, I don't expect to add a lot of software. They still include iWork. Sound is very good, surprising!
I didn't know if I was ever going to be able to buy another new Mac, so this paradise for me!
conmee
macrumors 6502a
Always nice to hear a positive story like this. Happy to hear you were able to get the Neo with Touch ID and more storage. Enjoy!
I am so happy for you! Have fun!
I just received an Indigo with 512 GB SSD and configured it with no issues. I am looking at it as the 'coffee table' machine. I have 16" M1 Max MBPro and a 14" M4 MBPro, along with an M4 Pro Mac Mini as my desktop machine. This machine may make the 14" MBPro redundant but we will see. At $700 all in, it is worth having one to play with and keeping around unless it is just not usable.
First impressions are very good. High quality fit and finish with the definite feel of a high quality Apple product. Setup was easy, although I thought the process a little slow at times. This may have been just the time of day and Apple's slow authorization of my iDs etc.
Keyboard: Nice but a little clicky when compared to the MBPros and not quite as smooth feeling. It feels like the Magic Keyboard supplied with the 24" iMac which is also a little 'clicky'.
Trackpad: Works just as well as the haptic track pads and I would be hard pressed to notice the mechanical operation.
Magsafe: This an irritation as we have MagSafe charging cables around the house to plug in the MBPros (my wife also has a 16" M1 Pro MBPro) when needed, so we need to make available a conventional USB C charging cable, which is a step backward. First world problems I know, but a conventional cable is just a little less convenient.
Backlight for keyboard: Probably the thing I miss the most, surprisingly, as I had not expected this to be an issue. I am getting used to it as I am a touch typist but it is more noticeable than expected and possibly the biggest issue I have.
Screen: The default wallpapers do not do the screen any favors as they are over bright and tend make the screen look as if it is blooming and slightly fuzzy. Restoring my default wallpapers did the trick and the screen looks excellent and is perfectly nice for normal use.
Battery Life: Excellent. After 6 hours of use, setting up and playing with various apps, the battery has dropped to 97% from 100%.
Ports: Inconveniently both on the left. It would be nice to have had one on the left and the other on the right (especially for charging). I used the slow speed port for charging and connected a hub on the high speed port which had an SD card slot, some ports. I connected an ACASIS 2TB TB4/USB drive and got around 975 MB/s (read and write) which was decent enough (this compares with the internal SSD which has 1.5 GB/s read and write transfer speed) and in line with the port's 10Gb/s specification.
Performance: Works fine on all my normal web browsing, email and document activities. I have not done any really heavy duty photo processing which I will try later but reviewing and doing some minor tweaks on some new photos I took was easy (I take RAW and edit them for distributions in my library). I loaded 10,000 tracks from my Music library and have been streaming them with no issues. The machine feels fast and responsive with no issues encountered due to RAM pressure. I am not expecting this machine to be used with Lightroom or DxO Photolab or FCP or DaVinci Resolve. I have other machines to do that heavy lifting. This is a machine which I can pick up, do my emails, edit documents, browse the web, review pictures and play music. For that purpose this machine is ideal.
Summary: This is a delightful machine that looks superb in Indigo and feels easy and fast enough for general use. And for $700 it is an absolute bargain.
First impressions are very good. High quality fit and finish with the definite feel of a high quality Apple product. Setup was easy, although I thought the process a little slow at times. This may have been just the time of day and Apple's slow authorization of my iDs etc.
Keyboard: Nice but a little clicky when compared to the MBPros and not quite as smooth feeling. It feels like the Magic Keyboard supplied with the 24" iMac which is also a little 'clicky'.
Trackpad: Works just as well as the haptic track pads and I would be hard pressed to notice the mechanical operation.
Magsafe: This an irritation as we have MagSafe charging cables around the house to plug in the MBPros (my wife also has a 16" M1 Pro MBPro) when needed, so we need to make available a conventional USB C charging cable, which is a step backward. First world problems I know, but a conventional cable is just a little less convenient.
Backlight for keyboard: Probably the thing I miss the most, surprisingly, as I had not expected this to be an issue. I am getting used to it as I am a touch typist but it is more noticeable than expected and possibly the biggest issue I have.
Screen: The default wallpapers do not do the screen any favors as they are over bright and tend make the screen look as if it is blooming and slightly fuzzy. Restoring my default wallpapers did the trick and the screen looks excellent and is perfectly nice for normal use.
Battery Life: Excellent. After 6 hours of use, setting up and playing with various apps, the battery has dropped to 97% from 100%.
Ports: Inconveniently both on the left. It would be nice to have had one on the left and the other on the right (especially for charging). I used the slow speed port for charging and connected a hub on the high speed port which had an SD card slot, some ports. I connected an ACASIS 2TB TB4/USB drive and got around 975 MB/s (read and write) which was decent enough (this compares with the internal SSD which has 1.5 GB/s read and write transfer speed) and in line with the port's 10Gb/s specification.
Performance: Works fine on all my normal web browsing, email and document activities. I have not done any really heavy duty photo processing which I will try later but reviewing and doing some minor tweaks on some new photos I took was easy (I take RAW and edit them for distributions in my library). I loaded 10,000 tracks from my Music library and have been streaming them with no issues. The machine feels fast and responsive with no issues encountered due to RAM pressure. I am not expecting this machine to be used with Lightroom or DxO Photolab or FCP or DaVinci Resolve. I have other machines to do that heavy lifting. This is a machine which I can pick up, do my emails, edit documents, browse the web, review pictures and play music. For that purpose this machine is ideal.
Summary: This is a delightful machine that looks superb in Indigo and feels easy and fast enough for general use. And for $700 it is an absolute bargain.
There's people on Reddit trading in their 13" M4 and M5 iPad pros for the Neo. I'm guessing to get the keyboard and not have to shell out for a magic keyboard.
Thank you so much for this thoughtful and informative review.
Wow even the silver getting sold out.
I have an iPad Mini 7 and a MacBook Neo, and I'd say their displays are very similar in quality. They both look fine to me.
Zazoh
macrumors 68000
I also thought that was an odd choice. It’s different and cool but for those with less than perfect vision the lack of contrast makes it less accessible.
I think that white letters on the blue keys would have been a better choice.
Apple_Robert
Contributor
Technerd108
macrumors 68040
This was my main concern since the Neo lacks a backlight.
The citrus or silver seem to be best but they could have increased contrast while still having some color matching elements. Like a darker shade of the same color and white key background but as it is the indigo seems the worst but maybe it looks a lot better in real life and this is just an overblown concern.
I really like the color matching on the keyboard. So it would be nice to hear how people feel about the contrast and keys in different lighting and beyond your muscle memory.
The more I read about the Neo, the more I like it but the lack of a backlit keyboard is a big deal to me and reduced contrast keyboard may compound the problem?
Technerd108
macrumors 68040
I have a feeling they will sell out of every color. At least it isn't too long a wait. BTO takes about sane time?
Hopefully though Apple will deliver early maybe a week maybe more or less??
Hope you enjoy it when you get it!!!