Apple Unveils MacBook Neo, a Budget Mac Laptop with the A18 Pro Chip

KOMPAS.com – Apple has officially released the MacBook Neo, the latest laptop model positioned as the most affordable within the Mac line.

The device was released on Tuesday, 4 March 2026, in US time and is available for pre-order with first shipments on 11 March 2026.

MacBook Neo arrives as a laptop targeting students, first‑time Mac users, or consumers who simply need a daily computing device at a lower price.

Apple prices the device starting at US$599 (around Rp 10 million), while education sector pricing starts at US$499 (around Rp 8 million).

“Laptop this features a durable aluminium design in four colours, a brilliant Liquid Retina display, performance powered by Apple Silicon, all‑day battery life, and high‑quality camera, microphone, and speakers,” said John Ternus, Apple Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering.

Design-wise, the MacBook Neo is designed as a slim, lightweight laptop weighing about 1.2 kilograms.

The laptop comes in more expressive colour options than previous MacBook lines, namely Blush, Indigo, Silver, and Citrus. The colours are also applied to the keyboard area to create a cohesive look with the body.

The panel supports up to 1 billion colours and comes with an anti-reflective coating.

For the processor, the MacBook Neo is powered by the A18 Pro chip, previously used in the iPhone 16 Pro line.

Apple claims this chipset can handle everyday activities such as web browsing, document editing, light photo editing, and running AI-based applications.

The MacBook Neo comes with 8 GB of RAM and SSD storage options of 256 GB or 512 GB.

The 512 GB model also includes Touch ID integrated into the power button for added security when unlocking the device or conducting digital transactions.

On the camera and audio front, the MacBook Neo features a FaceTime HD 1080p camera for video calls.