Apple MacBook Neo reviews: Is 8 GB of RAM enough?
The first test reports of the Apple MacBook Neo were published today by select publications and YouTube channels, ahead of the laptop’s official launch on Wednesday. It is available in blush, citrus, indigo, and silver and is powered by a version of the A18 Pro chip from the iPhone 16 Pro. The laptop features a 13-inch display, up to 512 GB of storage, and 8 GB of RAM (not configurable).
The Apple MacBook Neo is Apples cheapest MacBook to date. It’s praised in most previous reviews for its excellent value for money. Prices start at just €699/$599, and even at just $499 for students and qualified education professionals. The big question in most tests was always the same: Is 8 GB of RAM enough? Most testers said: Yes.
Apple MacBook Neo Reviews
Antonio G. Di Benedetto from The Verge said that the 8 GB of RAM in the Apple MacBook Neo was “perfectly adequate” for “the everyday productivity tasks for which the Neo is designed”.
“The MacBook Neo handles the light tasks it was designed for with ease. The A18 Pro chip even outperforms Apple’s M1 MacBook Air (and most Windows laptops) in single-core benchmarks—the most important specification for the everyday productivity tasks the Neo is intended for. Therefore, this $600 notebook is excellent for simple tasks like web browsing and working with Google Docs. The Neo’s 8GB of RAM and slow 256GB of storage are perfectly adequate for these purposes. However, the device does feel a bit sluggish with some tasks if you look closely—for example, it sometimes takes a moment for the icons in the Applications folder to appear in the Dock.”
The comparatively small amount of RAM and storage space prevents the Neo from performing as well as the MacBook Airs and Pros in more demanding creative applications, but that’s okay.”
Matt Elliott from CNET I ran a Geekbench 6 test on the Apple MacBook Neo. The A18 Pro chip achieved 3,541 points in the single-core test and 8,958 points in the multi-core test. This means the MacBook Neo’s peak performance surpasses that of Macs with the M1 chip, while the single-core score approaches that of the M4 chip.
Benchmark tests
| Mac Model | Multi-Core-CPU-Test |
|---|---|
| MacBook Pro (M5 Max) | 29,233 |
| Mac Studio (M3 Ultra) | 27,726 |
| MacBook Pro (M4 Max) | 25,702 |
| MacBook Pro (M4 Pro) | 22,490 |
| Mac Studio (M2 Ultra) | 21,410 |
| MacBook Pro (M3 Max) | 20,960 |
| Mac Studio (M1 Ultra) | 18,434 |
| MacBook Air (M5) | 17,073 |
| MacBook Pro (M3 Pro) | 15,260 |
| MacBook Pro (M2 Max) | 14,740 |
| MacBook Air (M4) | 14,731 |
| MacBook Pro (M2 Pro) | 14,451 |
| MacBook Pro (M1 Max) | 12,345 |
| MacBook Pro (M1 Pro) | 12,345 |
| MacBook Air (M3) | 12,020 |
| MacBook Air (M2) | 9,709 |
| MacBook Neo (A18 Pro) | 8,958 |
| MacBook Air (M1) | 8,342 |
Chris Welch from Bloomberg praised the aluminum design, the display quality, and the two speakers on the left and right sides of the Apple MacBook Neo:
“Even for users who only use the computer occasionally, the Neo’s aluminum casing, crisp screen, and balanced speakers will make it a no-brainer for millions of people. In your hand, the device feels just like a Mac – it looks, feels, and sounds the same.”
Tom’s Guide conducted its usual battery test, which involves continuous internet browsing with the display brightness set to 150 nits. The Apple MacBook Neo lasted 13 hours and 28 minutes. The publication described this as “fantastic endurance for a notebook in this price range,” surpassing the 8 hours and 39 minutes of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Go 3. However, it fell short of the latest MacBook Air M5, which managed 15 hours and 28 minutes in the test.
Although the Apple MacBook Neo in its base configuration only has 8 GB of RAM, no Touch ID button, no MagSafe, slower USB-C ports instead of Thunderbolt ports, and no backlit keys, most reviews conclude that the notebook still represents an excellent value.
Harry McCracken of Fast Company:
“Overall, the MacBook Neo is one of Apple’s best products in recent memory, even if its innovation lies more in thoughtful cost management than in new features. It’s not only an attractive option for anyone looking for a laptop in this price range, but also the perfect Mac for children and other family members who might otherwise have inherited a worn-out, slow device. I wouldn’t be surprised if it sells like hotcakes.”
