Neo has found a glitch in the price Matrix.
Apple is continuing its affordability offensive with the pending release of the MacBook Neo, which is the company’s cheapest digital notebook ever.
The product will set customers back just $599 for 256g storage (and $699 for 512g), Post correspondents learned while attending March 4’s “Special Apple Experience” in NYC, where the budget laptop was unveiled.
That price tag makes this gadget $200 dollars cheaper than the last low-cost Mac, the 2014 MacBook Air model, which cost $899 — the then record for the cheapest ever US price for a newly released Mac notebook. If that wasn’t agreeable enough, the price drops to just $499 for teachers and students or anyone else with a “.edu”-affiliated email.
The charity drive pricetag is, in part, a credit to Apple changing the material to 60% recycled aluminum, ditching the backlit keyboard, and shrinking the screen to just 13 inches, Apple representatives told the Post.
Unlike the M-series processors that power the MacBook Air and Pro, Neo is outfitted with an A18 Pro chip made of the same silicon used in iPhones’ processors, providing Apple with leeway to drive prices lower.
However, users are promised a lot of bang for their buck with the device, which comes in blush, indigo, silver, and citrus colors.
Apple highlighted the device’s dual side-firing speakers, the lava lamp-like Liquid Retina display, as well as the 16 hours of battery life, allowing users to “go all day on a single charge.”
“We’re incredibly excited to introduce MacBook Neo, which delivers the magic of the Mac at a breakthrough price,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of Hardware Engineering. “Built from the ground up to be more affordable for even more people, MacBook Neo is a laptop only Apple could create.”
The Neo rolls out for preorder starting Wednesday and will be widely available beginning on March 11.
With its release, Apple is hoping to appeal to cash-strapped students and other first-time Mac Users who have been pummeled by global price hikes, CNBC reported.
In fact, the Neo wasn’t the only discount device that was unveiled on Wednesday.
Another alleged bargain buy is the iPhone 17e, also $599, which was billed as offering users faster performance, enhanced durability, and twice as much storage as the 16E — 256GB versus 128GB — but for the exact same price.
This increased capacity is due to the A19 chip, which ostensibly offers a significant performance bump compared to its predecessor’s A18.
Plus, the device, which has the same release schedule as the Neo, comes in soft pink, along with the classic black and white options.
Meanwhile, on Monday, Apple announced its revamped iPad Air, which is outfitted with the aforementioned M4 chip.
The11-inch model also starts at just $599 while the larger 13-inch version sets buyers back $799.
