Apple’s gamble on a cheaper MacBook appears to be paying off in a big way. New figures suggest that the budget MacBook Neo – one of the best laptops we’ve reviewed this year – has already become the company’s best-selling Mac, despite only being available for part of its debut quarter while battling supply issues.
According to figures from IDC (via MacRumors), Apple shipped around 1.1 million MacBook Neo units during the first quarter of the year. That’s enough to put it ahead of every other Mac model, including the M5 MacBook Air, which reportedly shipped more than 900,000 units, and the M5 MacBook Pro, which managed around 550,000.
Those numbers are particularly impressive, because the MacBook Neo only went on sale in mid-March, giving it roughly three weeks of availability before the quarter ended. That won’t come as a huge surprise if you’ve been following the MacBook Neo story, mind.
Since launch, reports have repeatedly pointed to demand outstripping supply, with Apple’s lower-cost laptop proving especially popular among students, first-time Mac buyers, and people looking to upgrade ageing Windows machines without spending MacBook Air money.
Starting at £599 in the UK and $599 in the US, it significantly undercuts the MacBook Air while still offering the premium aluminium design, excellent keyboard, long battery life, and high-quality display that people typically associate with the company’s more expensive laptops.
To hit that lower price point, Apple made one major change – swapping its M-series silicon for the A18 Pro chip. That’s the same processor family originally developed for the iPhone, and the tech giant has reportedly struggled to secure enough chips to fully meet demand.
Beyond the sales figures, the bigger story is what the Neo could mean for Apple’s position in the wider PC market. Macs have traditionally struggled to compete in the lower-priced laptop segment, leaving much of the market to Windows manufacturers. The Neo changes that equation by bringing an actually affordable MacBook into a category where Apple has historically had very little footprint.
The impact is already being felt, with Dell’s new $699 XPS 13 aimed squarely at the same segment. Analysts also predict that the MacBook Neo could eventually help Apple significantly expand its share of the entry-level notebook market.
Either way, more competition is good news for laptop buyers. With half the year still ahead of us, Apple’s new budget MacBook Neo is likely to face plenty more Windows rivals before long…
Read the full article here
