Thanks. Also just seen this post confirming:
“After a good 5 minutes, I already forgot the trackpad is mechanical. Especially if you select "Tap to click" under settings.”
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Initial NEO thoughts
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“After a good 5 minutes, I already forgot the trackpad is mechanical. Especially if you select "Tap to click" under settings.”
bchreng
macrumors 65816
maflynn
macrumors Broadwell
Tbh, I prefer the mechanical trackpad (though I travel with a mouse). i never gelled with the Force Touch trackpad, so going back to a mechanical one is a step forward in my book
As I wrote in the delivery thread, I’m all happy with the Neo so far:
The first impression is ‘quite decent, indeed’. Positive surprises: really good touch pad feel (albeit it has quite a bit of switch bounce) and screen brightness. Keys also go individually through holes in the casing, and are not placed in a plastic assembly, unlike in recent, more expensive MacBooks. Nice!
Programs load fast and Safari is feels snappier than in iPad Air M2, as expected. I’m also good with its size. While it could be a tad thinner, it’s completely OK for my purposes and for the price. Keyboard feels very natural, perhaps a tiny bit mushy, and I like it even more than keyboard in MBP M4. In short… it’s a Mac!
The first impression is ‘quite decent, indeed’. Positive surprises: really good touch pad feel (albeit it has quite a bit of switch bounce) and screen brightness. Keys also go individually through holes in the casing, and are not placed in a plastic assembly, unlike in recent, more expensive MacBooks. Nice!
Programs load fast and Safari is feels snappier than in iPad Air M2, as expected. I’m also good with its size. While it could be a tad thinner, it’s completely OK for my purposes and for the price. Keyboard feels very natural, perhaps a tiny bit mushy, and I like it even more than keyboard in MBP M4. In short… it’s a Mac!
Interesting Tap To Click works. I don't remember ever using that before, but may give it a try here
FWIW, no issue with bluetooth or updates or anything else mentioned here. Did run into my first limitation today. I had an old (pre-subscription) version of Day One Classic (intel) that would not install. I got an error message something about the app didn't comply with the most recent protocols. It works on my Air running 18.XXXX
I was able to open & run other intel software though, so not sure what exactly happened, but looks like an OS 26.X issue, not a NEO issue.
I was able to open & run other intel software though, so not sure what exactly happened, but looks like an OS 26.X issue, not a NEO issue.
This is one of the first things I always turn on as well - just enabled on my Neo and it works wonderfully.
conmee
macrumors 6502a
Did you change your mind about your original Citrus order? Or is this a "just in case" comment? Based on photos, Citrus appears to be the most striking shade, but if I were to buy, I'd probably choose Indigo.
FWIW, I found it funny (and we've obviously disagreed on other posts about the NEO)
I just finished setting mine up and ran Blackmagic disk speed test and Geekbench 6. So far I'm happy with it. Right now the only thing running is Safari with Adblock on. I have 14 tabs open and RAM used is at 6.29 GB with no swap.
Citrus is what you pick if you want everyone to know you have a Neo. From a distance, Indigo looks like the “Midnight” Air, albeit a bit lighter. Blush is very subtle, at least in the Apple Store lighting.
Picked up an Indigo. So far I like it. Saw the Citrus...I liked it but I'm a blueish liking kinda guy. I'd say the keys could be a lighter shade of the color. The indigo color itself...maybe it's a more dark slate blue is how I might describe it.
Here's a side by side with my 15 Sky "Blue" Air. (In person the keys look a touch darker)
Here's a side by side with my 15 Sky "Blue" Air. (In person the keys look a touch darker)
jz0309
macrumors P6
I don't know, I can only read text on a forum and a few min before I posted above reply I came across your response in another, see below, and that particular comment on page 8 of a thread you had started. And from various other posts of your re the Neo in the past few days I certainly got my impression of you being critical.
Maybe I overreacted, I also let another member get under my skin for their continued negativity regards almost everything Apple incl the Neo ...
I for one have a Neo coming today, I have had a "couch" and travel computer for like 25 years or so, I replaced a M1 MBA 20 months or so ago with a M2 iPad Air, and while the iPad does everything I use it for, I never really "fell in love" (my first iPad though my wife had quite a few for the past 10 years) and in particular am not enjoying typing on the screen. So if the Neo meets my general needs, it'll replace the iPad for me
The same KB Covers overlay (I have one for Thai) fits the Neo and M3 MBA identically. I'm not doubting your perception only weighing in with an observation.
I'm pretty impressed with the Neo. My brewfile installed apps (about 150 of them) compiled right up in pretty quick time and without any issues. Docker is fast (about 0.3 seconds to launch an Elixir container), Go and Erlang compilations are within fractions of a second of my other M series hardware, Emacs is actually a little faster on startup (11 seconds vs. 13) than the M1 Pro/16 I'm using for work. The screen looks fine to my eyes and plugs right into an ASD as you'd expect. The speakers are acceptable but not special. It sure feels like an Apple laptop: I have no qualms about the build quality.
I don't want to give the impression that I think it's a replacement for all other Macs but damn, it's a lot more capable than what I was expecting. This is not a consumption only device and provides plenty of utility beyond "simple" tasks. It's a real Mac. They're going to sell a boatload of these things.
Mostly though the citrus color looks fantastic. 🙂
It could totally be my mind playing tricks on me. It felt closer, but probably not. I was trying to hold the tape measure & see it, but they are likely the same.
Agree with everything else as well. Truly surprised at how capable this is. Feels exactly like my M2 Air. I don't notice any slowdown or anything like that. Just the smaller dimensions (L & W at least). Really, really happy with it so far.
bryo
macrumors regular
Im impressed too. Comparing it to my MacBook Pro, I mean yeah the speakers are not shockingly good like the pro, but they are SURPRISINGLY solid. Sound way better than the iPad Air for example. I can only vaguely recall how they compare to a MacBook Air 13, but I think it's in the ballpark to those. The mechanical trackpad is really nice. Yeah I prefer the haptic, but this one is great too.
I have a legion 7i gen 10 I got on sale as a mobile gaming machine, and this $600 MacBook blows it away in terms of sound quality and even build quality despite the legion also being aluminum and $1300 on SALE. And the mechanical Neo trackpad is still leagues better than the legion, which is also glass and I would consider to be "good" compared to most windows laptops.
For the price the Neo is pretty awesome. Best apple product in a long time dare I say.
I have a legion 7i gen 10 I got on sale as a mobile gaming machine, and this $600 MacBook blows it away in terms of sound quality and even build quality despite the legion also being aluminum and $1300 on SALE. And the mechanical Neo trackpad is still leagues better than the legion, which is also glass and I would consider to be "good" compared to most windows laptops.
For the price the Neo is pretty awesome. Best apple product in a long time dare I say.
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I don’t like the feel of the trackpad, however the person I bought the Neo for prefers the mechanical feel, so that’s the main thing I suppose.
MultiFinder17
macrumors 68030
I'm legit impressed with mine so far - I have the base 256GB Silver one, and it really doesn't feel like a $500 laptop. The keyboard is fantastic, the screen is fantastic, the trackpad is just as good IMHO, the speakers are solid, and the build quality is just as good as any other MacBook. The performance so far has been just as solid as any other AS Mac, bearing in mind that I'm not doing terribly intense things on this machine. I don't really have any major complaints so far. I'm sure I'll find some nitpicks over time, but I'm impressed thus far.
I guess I am use to the trackpads on my Dell laptops and my Logitech mice. The Neo trackpad doesn't bother me.
I just watched a few YouTube videos and the speakers are pretty good. The Neo sounds about the same as my 2018 iPad Pro with its 4 speakers and sounds better than my M3 iPad Air.
I just watched a few YouTube videos and the speakers are pretty good. The Neo sounds about the same as my 2018 iPad Pro with its 4 speakers and sounds better than my M3 iPad Air.
I use mine with the lid closed a fair amount & the speakers on the side seem louder than the ones on my Air, which I think are under the keyboard.
4sallypat
macrumors 603
I picked up the Indigo after comparing it with the Citrus in the store.
Citrus was a bit too green for my taste.
Wife will probably take the Citrus.
first thing I turned on, thankfully it still exists
Don't forget 3 finger drag. If you've never tried it, try it. Game changer especially with tap to click.
The music was almost certainly quieter because of Spatial audio, Atmos has a lower LUFS/LKFS and more headroom so well mastered audio will be slightly quieter in Spatial. Try forcing Stereo (or using Spotify) if you want it a bit louder.
My blush Neo comes tomorrow, Studio Display XDR next week 🙂
The music was almost certainly quieter because of Spatial audio, Atmos has a lower LUFS/LKFS and more headroom so well mastered audio will be slightly quieter in Spatial. Try forcing Stereo (or using Spotify) if you want it a bit louder.
My blush Neo comes tomorrow, Studio Display XDR next week 🙂
Tessou
macrumors newbie
That’s both impressive but expected at the same time. RE2R has an iPhone version that also plays very well on the 16 Pro that it shares a chip with. What I’d like to know is how the battery handled that gameplay.