Things that need fixing on the MacBook Neo

[geta]

Well Apple is not increasing the size of the Neo at least now, so if you want more memory your options are another model.

It's like last year people wanted MagSafe for their 16e, and lo and behold, the 17e has it plus double the storage for the same price…

 

[geta]

I agree that the Mac Neo is a great device at this price point, but would it have killed them to add MagSafe? Everyone trips over a cord now and then. No need to send a brand new device flying across the room in 2026!

You didn't read the memo that MagSafe is an MBP feature that managed to sneak into MBA… 😂

 

[4sallypat]

People are trolling. That as my dad used to say when I was kid, no common sense haha.

^^^ this ^^^

 

[HouseLannister]

Things that need fixing on the MacBook Neo​

I came into this thread thinking you had broken one already. 🤣

 

[geta]

I came into this thread thinking you had broken one already. 🤣

It's a nicer way for a wish list thread, and along the way some people come and say that if they want those features they should buy NBA or MBP instead... 🤷‍♂️

 

[XboxEvolved]

I agree that the Mac Neo is a great device at this price point, but would it have killed them to add MagSafe? Everyone trips over a cord now and then. No need to send a brand new device flying across the room in 2026!

Considering a lot of people’s Macs still don’t have it and Walmart at least was selling the older mba without it before, it’s nice, but still more an added bonus.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

Considering a lot of people’s Macs still don’t have it and Walmart at least was selling the older mba without it before, it’s nice, but still more an added bonus.

I of course have MagSafe on my current Air, and my Apple Silicon Pro before this, but... I don't really get the point now. I never use it and just charge with usb-c, since anything and everything uses the same charging cable.

Plus, that magnet is pretty strong; much stronger than I remember on my 2012 MBP. I'm not sure it would come loose off my laptop before it went sliding off. I can almost dangle my air with just the MagSafe cable.

 

[geta]

Considering a lot of people’s Macs still don’t have it and Walmart at least was selling the older mba without it before, it’s nice, but still more an added bonus.

No idea which Macs you referring to, but Magsafe first introduced in 2006, with a brief break between 2019-2021.

 

[mpetrides]

At the end of the day the Neo is an iPhone that can run macOS, give it a break guys.

It's for a specific target market: Students and people who just do simpler tasks in a browser and other tools. It's perfectly fine for most people. A19 Pro and A20 Pro will make it much better and I am sure they'll have dual USBC ports and better support for external monitors down the line. It's a good move by Apple to bring more people into the ecosystem.

Get a MacBook Air on sale if you're not happy with Neo, it's a few hundred bucks more (constantly on sale).

I take exception to this. The Neo is not an iPhone that can run MacOS, it is a full-fledged budget laptop that happens to sport an iPhone chipset. If you didn't know what chipset was driving it, I doubt anyone would be able to differentiate it from an M-series chip.

I agree that people should "give it a break." I played with one at Best Buy yesterday and was seriously impressed. They had 12-15 apps in the dock and I opened each one (including iMovie and Garage Band) at the same time, did "work" in them, cruised the Web, watched a YT video and a trailer in Apple TV and the darned thing didn't miss a beat. And it was using only 1.3 GB of swap memory. The screen was just fine, even watching movie trailers; the keyboard and trackpad were also just fine, felt like the ones I am used to on my M2 MBA and the Magic Keyboard on my Mac Studio. It is a fine little budget laptop and I would have bought a 512 GB model in a heartbeat were it not for the fact that it duplicates the function of the M2 MBA I already own--which serves as a "knock-around laptop" for me.

 

[SDAVE]

I take exception to this. The Neo is not an iPhone that can run MacOS, it is a full-fledged budget laptop that happens to sport an iPhone chipset. If you didn't know what chipset was driving it, I doubt anyone would be able to differentiate it from an M-series chip.

I agree that people should "give it a break." I played with one at Best Buy yesterday and was seriously impressed. They had 12-15 apps in the dock and I opened each one (including iMovie and Garage Band) at the same time, did "work" in them, cruised the Web, watched a YT video and a trailer in Apple TV and the darned thing didn't miss a beat. And it was using only 1.3 GB of swap memory. The screen was just fine, even watching movie trailers; the keyboard and trackpad were also just fine, felt like the ones I am used to on my M2 MBA and the Magic Keyboard on my Mac Studio. It is a fine little budget laptop and I would have bought a 512 GB model in a heartbeat were it not for the fact that it duplicates the function of the M2 MBA I already own--which serves as a "knock-around laptop" for me.

It's an iPhone through and through that can run macOS. The iPhone also runs macOS but a mobile version (iPhones are based on macOS foundation). That's why there's no Thunderbolt or support for 5k displays.

iPhones are very powerful already, that's the point.

 

[mk313]

I of course have MagSafe on my current Air, and my Pro before this, but... I don't really get the point now. I never use it and just charge with usb-c, since anything and everything uses the same charging cable.

Plus, that magnet is pretty strong; much stronger than my 2012 MBP. I'm not sure it would come loose off my laptop before it went sliding off. I can almost dangle my air with just the MagSafe cable.

Agree, plus if this is designed for schools, it's gotta be a lot cheaper for them to get replacement USB-C power adapters than having to buy MagSafe ones. That's the main reason I think this will never get MagSafe.

 

[ikramerica]

If one didn't have to pay extra for it even though it cost Apple extra, sure. Apple did what they did so more people on a very limited budget could give their kid(s) a quality laptop that will last several years.

And because schools can’t use it. So why include it on the $499 model? And what if it would cause the model to cost $519?

 

[geta]

Agree, plus if this is designed for schools, it's gotta be a lot cheaper for them to get replacement USB-C power adapters than having to buy MagSafe ones. That's the main reason I think this will never get MagSafe.

You know you can use both options for charging, right? so they don't have to use Magsafe if they don't want to.

 

[uffenman]

Only disappointing thing is the weight imo. Smaller battery than the air why does it weigh the same?

Weight is a priceless commodity in this business. The existing MBA will become the new MacBook, as at 2.7/2.8 lbs is not a true "air" product, and Apple will rerelease a true "AIR" product which will be around the 2 lb / 1 kg weight arena. I just wiped my 2017 12" MB clean and installed open core & sequoia, it is the ultimate travel laptop at 2 lbs. Great for international trips!

 

[throAU]

Only disappointing thing is the weight imo. Smaller battery than the air why does it weigh the same?

The air is about 2x the price and uses a much more expensive (in terms of machine time and aluminium re-processing cost) manufacturing process.

16 hours of battery is excellent. And for people that need more, we have things called electrical outlets. The Neo supports an external monitor.

Also, the power consumption on this is tiny enough that you could give it multiple days of battery life on the go with a portable battery bank or two.

I agree that the Mac Neo is a great device at this price point, but would it have killed them to add MagSafe? Everyone trips over a cord now and then. No need to send a brand new device flying across the room in 2026!

There were several generations of MacBook/MacBooks air (including the 12") that never had MagSafe. PC laptops don't have MagSafe. Its additional space, power routing, weight and cost for a feature that probably won't be used anyway because this laptop is focused on "on the go" usage, and a lot of users (myself included) plug into a dock or monitor that charges our machines anyway.

I've had laptops both PC and Mac for over 25 years at this point usually without using MagSafe, and you know how many machines I've killed or even slightly damaged in that time due to lack of MagSafe?

ZERO

You know how many PC laptops I've seen returned to our Helpdesk at work with broken power ports in the past 15 years across a fleet of 2000+?

ONE


This device is a compromise: make reasonable cuts to fit within a price-point.

Everybody will have their pet features they wish it had that are small but generally not deal breaking issues at that price point. If apple were to add even half of the missing features a lot of people are complaining about, it would rapidly approach the cost of a MacBook Air, rendering the device's entire existence irrelevant.

That said.

I think the next MacBook Air refresh will be significantly different from today : think something like base M series CPU in a VERY thin and light device like the 12" MacBook. Probably once Neo v2 gets here with 12 GB from the A17 pro; that would make the Air and Neo much closer, justifying/requiring bumping the Air up in both price and features and/or smaller/more premium form factor to justify its existence.

The neo will cover the former "Air" segment (do general every day tasks in an entry level affordable MacBook), the Pro will keep the high end and the Air will be the fancy, flashy ultraportable with decent power that business exec types can carry out and about with minimal weight - at 2-3x the Neo price. Maybe with next generation battery tech and an OLED display to somewhat replace the entry level Pro.


i.e. 2027-2028 time-frame:

Neo: 12 GB A19 Pro
Air: M6 <= 32 GB, OLED (maybe), smaller/thinner/lighter form factor than today
Pro: no base M6, M6 Pro and up only, 36-48GB+, tandem OLED

 

[EllZ89]

It's an iPhone through and through that can run macOS.

how big must your pockets be that you can fit a laptop into them? 🤯

 

[Lukomaldini]

I have noticed a trend on MR where a lot of people are wanting extra RAM, more battery and ports, when the MBP already has the extras. Granted, I get that a lot of people like the slightly smaller, colorful Neo but,I don't think it wise to try and turn the Neo into a MBP replacement, because it isn't meant to be especially for the price.

Completely agree. If people want more ram and faster ports etc then Pro or the Air will fit your needs. It’s like buying a Civic and saying wish it had a V8 and AWD…

 

[Dirk Pieters]

They put it down because if they don't, they have to face the fact that the Neo can do most things for a lot less than what was paid for the MBP. It also means admitting that the *GB rhetoric is really much ado about nothing (as a whole). The last group are the forum elitist who snub their nose at anything that can't do 2-4 monitors etc.

I don’t think that’s it. A Pro and Neo are different beasts alltogether.

I think that most people wear eye patches - like horses - and are so stuck in their own workflow and their own needs that they cannot imagine others being able to do work on a Neo.

When the first Neo reviews came out I remember thinking “Why does everyone consider 4K movie editing a valid test?”

Probably because I have never edited - and will probably never edit - a 4K movie myself. I also don’t open all the applications all at once.

The same thing happened with the iPhone Air. It seems that a majority of people cannot imagine how a device they don’t like themselves could be a valid choice for someone else.

 

[joshwithachance]

For me, personally... the only things that need "fixing" are the lack of True Tone and subpar battery life. An increase in RAM and touchID on the base model would be welcome as well.

 

[4sallypat]

Agree, plus if this is designed for schools, it's gotta be a lot cheaper for them to get replacement USB-C power adapters than having to buy MagSafe ones. That's the main reason I think this will never get MagSafe.

Yes, 100% correct for a school environment.

We use only USB-C chargers for every device (Chromebooks, Macbook pro, iPad Pro, etc).

We are ordering the Neo because it specifically uses USB-C for both charging and external devices.

 

[subjonas]

There's fixing a product and then there's wishing it had features/specs that it doesn't. OP actually mostly listed fixes. But a lot of posts seem to just be a wishlist of things that exist in higher tier models. It's fine to wish but it's not realistic to expect a lower tier product to be more comparable to a higher tier because then there's less reason for the higher tier product to exist and the company simply loses money. It's the same as demanding a price reduction in the higher tier. Again, fine to wish, but not realistic. Nor is it realistic to expect a company to have a tier that has the exact specifications you want. It's more likely a lower tier will lack something you want, and a higher tier will have more than what you want. A company can't have a million SKUs, so you just have to choose the one that's best for you.

So if this thread isn't about actual fixes, then it's just another "I wish there was a cheaper way to get the thing I want" thread.

 

[Queen6]

Yes, 100% correct for a school environment.

We use only USB-C chargers for every device (Chromebooks, Macbook pro, iPad Pro, etc).

We are ordering the Neo because it specifically uses USB-C for both charging and external devices.

Some may doubt but even in our daughter's university they don't allow the students to charge their notebooks in class as they have incurred several fires due to HW failing catastrophically. Hence why she went with the Honor MagicBook Pro 14 as it can get through a full day with ease on battery due to its 92Wh capacity.

Q-6

 

[geta]

Some may doubt but even in our daughter's university they don't allow the students to charge their notebooks in class as they have incurred several fires due to HW failing catastrophically. Hence why she went with the Honor MagicBook Pro 14 as it can get through a full day with ease on battery due to its 92Wh capacity.

Q-6

Is this a Chinese homage to 14” MacBook Pro? 🤔

 

[Queen6]

Is this a Chinese homage to 14” MacBook Pro? 🤔

No it's their own design with OLED, duel NVMe slots and more.

Q-6

 

[biggest father1]

I'd like to see the Neo get Thunderbolt 3 at least and support 2 external displays in clamshell. But since they're powered by iPhone chips, I guess the iPhone would have to support Thunderbolt before the Neo would.

Apple may not want Thunderbolt on an iPhone, though.