The MacBook Neo is powered by an iPhone-class chip, which is a first for Apple’s lineup of notebooks.

  • The MacBook Neo features the A18 Pro chip at its heart, which is the same chipset that powers the iPhone 16 Pro launched in 2024.
  • Apple stated that its latest low-cost notebook is up to 50% faster for everyday tasks when compared to a bestselling personal computer powered by the Intel Core Ultra 5 CPU.
  • The company also said that the MacBook Neo is up to three times faster for AI workloads and up to two times faster for photo editing tasks.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) on Wednesday launched the MacBook Neo, a new line of affordable notebooks in the company’s portfolio, offering buyers an alternative to Google’s Chromebooks.

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The MacBook Neo is powered by an iPhone-class chip, which is a first for Apple’s lineup of notebooks. The MacBook Neo features the A18 Pro chip at its heart, which is the same chipset that powers the iPhone 16 Pro launched in 2024.

Apple shares were up 0.2% in Wednesday’s opening trade. Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around the company trended in the ‘bearish’ territory at the time of writing.

This comes after Apple increased the prices of its MacBook Air and Pro lineup earlier this week.

Apple Touts MacBook Neo’s Power

Apple touted the MacBook Neo’s power despite using an iPhone-grade chip. The company stated that its latest low-cost notebook is up to 50% faster for everyday tasks when compared to a bestselling personal computer powered by the Intel Corp. (INTC) Core Ultra 5 CPU. The company also said that the MacBook Neo is up to three times faster for AI workloads and up to two times faster for photo editing tasks.

The MacBook Neo sports a 13-inch Liquid Retina display with support for up to 500 nits of brightness, along with an anti-reflective coating. It has two USB-C ports and a headphone jack.

Apple’s latest notebook is available in Silver, Citrus, Indigo, and Blush colors. Prices start at $599 for the 256GB storage, with the 512GB version with Touch ID costing $699.

Taking On Chromebooks

Apple’s latest notebook will compete with Google’s Chromebooks, which are available starting at $200, going all the way up to $700.

However, while the MacBook Neo features the powerful A18 Pro chipset, many of the Chromebooks, especially around the $200 to $500 price points, use MediaTek chipsets. Some Chromebooks are also powered by Intel’s lower-end Celeron and Core i3 chip.

AAPL stock is down 3% year-to-date, but up 12% over the past 12 months.

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