How cheap is the MacBook Neo? Even its top spec costs less than the base iPhone 17e
The MacBook Neo debuted last night and has almost immediately become Apple’s most polarising laptop in years. It’s undoubtedly cheap, starting at just RM2,499, and is in fact cheaper in Malaysia than most other countries; while it’s priced the same as the iPhone 17e’s USD599 tag in the US, here in Malaysia the MacBook Neo is RM500 less than Cupertino’s entry level iPhone.
Here’s what you’ll be getting for your money compared to other Apple devices:
MacBook Neo vs iPhone 17e
Considering that one is a laptop and the other is a smartphone, this might be a bit of an apples-to-oranges comparison. However, we think it’s worth comparing Apple’s entry-level product for their two most popular hardware categories just to see how much value you’re getting with the MacBook Neo.
| MacBook Neo | iPhone 17e | |
| Display | 13″ Liquid Retina IPS Display 2408×1506 resolution 500 nits brightness sRGB colour | 6.1″ Super Retina XDR Display 2532×1170 resolution 1,200 nits HDR brightness True Tone Wide colour (P3) |
| Chip | Apple A18 Pro | Apple A19 |
| Memory | 8GB | 8GB |
| Storage | 256GB 512GB (with Touch ID) | 256GB 512GB |
| OS | macOS 26 | iOS 26 |
| Battery | Up to 16 hours video streaming Up to 11 hours wireless web | Up to 26 hours video playback Up to 21 hours streaming |
| I/O | 1x USB-C 3 1x USB-C 2 1x 3.5mm audio jack | 1x USB-C 2 MagSafe 15W wireless Qi2 15W wireless |
| Camera | 1080p FaceTime HD | 48MP, f/1.6 Fusion 12MP, f/1.9 TrueDepth |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E Bluetooth 6 | 5G Gigabit LTE WiFi 6 Bluetooth 5.3 NFC |
| Price | 256GB – RM2,499 512GB (with Touch ID) – RM2,899 | 256GB – RM2,999 512GB – RM3,199 |
MacBook Neo vs iPad Air
The MacBook Neo joined the M4-powered iPad Air as one of Apple’s new products launched his week. The iPad Air is also generally considered the starting tablet option to consider if you’re one of those people looking to swap from a laptop to a tablet, thanks to its M-series chip and quality screen. Here’s how the two stack up against each other:
| MacBook Neo | iPad Air 2026 | |
| Display | 13″ Liquid Retina IPS Display 2408×1506 resolution 500 nits brightness sRGB colour | 11″ or 13″ Liquid Retina IPS Display 2360×1640 or 2732×2048 resolution 500 nits brightness True Tone Wide colour (P3) |
| Chip | Apple A18 Pro | Apple M4 |
| Memory | 8GB | 12GB |
| Storage | 256GB 512GB (with Touch ID) | 128GB 256GB 512GB 1TB |
| OS | macOS 26 | iPadOS 26 |
| Battery | Up to 16 hours video streaming Up to 11 hours wireless web | Up to 10 hours of video Up to 9 hours of web browsing |
| I/O | 1x USB-C 3 1x USB-C 2 1x 3.5mm audio jack | 1x USB-C 3 |
| Camera | 1080p FaceTime HD | 12MP, f/1.8 rear 12MP, f/2.0 Center Stage front |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E Bluetooth 6 | WiFi 7 Bluetooth 6 Optional 5G and Gigabit LTE |
| Price | 256GB – RM2,499 512GB (with Touch ID) – RM2,899 | 11″ – from RM2,799 13″ – from RM3,699 |
MacBook Neo vs MacBook Air
Lastly, we have the former cheapest Cupertino laptop: the MacBook Air. It too has been refreshed and is a ‘true’ laptop in the sense that it has their M-series processor, making it a fair bit more powerful albeit at a fairly higher price too.
| MacBook Neo | MacBook Air 2026 | |
| Display | 13″ Liquid Retina IPS Display 2408×1506 resolution 500 nits brightness sRGB colour | 13.6″ or 15.3″ Liquid Retina IPS Display 2560×1664 or 2880×1864 resolution 500 nits brightness True Tone Wide colour (P3) |
| Chip | Apple A18 Pro | Apple M5 |
| Memory | 8GB | 16GB 24GB 31GB |
| Storage | 256GB 512GB (with Touch ID) | 512GB 1TB 2TB 4TB |
| OS | macOS 26 | macOS 26 |
| Battery | Up to 16 hours video streaming Up to 11 hours wireless web | Up to 18 hours video streaming Up to 15 hours wireless web |
| I/O | 1x USB-C 3 1x USB-C 2 1x 3.5mm audio jack | 2x Thunderbolt 4 1x 3.5mm audio jack |
| Camera | 1080p FaceTime HD | 12MP Center Stage with Desk View |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E Bluetooth 6 | WiFi 7 Bluetooth 6 |
| Price | 256GB – RM2,499 512GB (with Touch ID) – RM2,899 | 13″ – from RM4,699 15″ – from RM5,499 |
Overall, the MacBook Neo is a very compelling option for anyone looking to get into the Apple ecosystem. The cheapest MacBook Air for instance is nearly double the price, making the MacBook Neo perhaps the best macOS laptop for students and casual users, who merely need a laptop with long battery life to handle their word documents, browsing the web and watching content.
Microsoft too should be wary of the MacBook Neo; the sub-RM3,000 laptop scene has traditionally been dominated by Windows laptops. But with the Windows 11 experience degrading and other laptop manufacturers struggling to deal with memory and storage shortages, Apple of all people coming up with a value-focused laptop at this price means that Microsoft and their hardware partners will need to quickly improve their products to avoid Cupertino taking away their users.
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