To make the new MacBook Neo — Apple’s most affordable laptop yet at just $599 — the company obviously needed to make some compromises. To keep costs down, Apple removed or scaled back several features that come standard on the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro.
Every wise shopper should consider the limitations of the MacBook Neo before jumping on Apple’s fun-looking new laptop.
The new MacBook Neo costs only $499 with Apple’s education discount, which makes a lot of parents excited. They could get a MacBook for their child for under $500!
Problem is, Apple’s educational discount isn’t available for every student. Here’s who can save $100 on a new MacBook… and who can’t. And what you can do to qualify.
March 5, 2012: Apple reaches a staggering milestone, with 25 billion apps downloaded from the iOS App Store. The company celebrates with a giveaway titled the “25 Billion App Countdown.”
The lucky 25 billionth app downloader wins an iTunes gift card worth $10,000.
This weekend Apple TV’s Formula 1 racing content gets into gear, as practice, qualifying and Sprint sessions for the season’s first major Grand Prix race get underway starting Saturday (March 7), Apple said Thursday. Multiview programming, with a handful of live feeds onscreen at the same time, looks like a notable feature for fans in the United States.
“This weekend marks the start of a new era for Formula 1 fans in the U.S.,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services. “We’re excited to bring every moment of the season to Apple TV, delivering an immersive experience designed entirely around fans.”
If you’re a Mac gamer — or curious about where gaming hardware is heading — Logitech G just launched something genuinely new. Logitech G Pro X2 Superstrike Lightspeed Wireless Gaming Mouse, released in February and now getting positive reviews, replaces the traditional physical click with a sophisticated haptic system that could give serious players a measurable edge.
At $179.99, it’s a premium proposition — but the technology underneath is unlike anything currently on the market.
Oceanhorn 3: Legend of the Shadow Sea just hit Apple Arcade. It’s the sequel to Knights of the Lost Realm, the absolute best role-playing game on Apple’s subscription gaming service.
Seriously, it’s worth it for RPG fans to subscribe the Apple Arcade for a couple of months just to play these two.
Working with multiple apps can make a laptop display feel cramped, but you can add a second screen with this deal on the Mobile Pixels Duex Float 2 Pro. The 16-inch portable display lets you add a snazzy second screen to your setup, wherever you decide to go.
And right now, this well-reviewed second display is on sale for just $279.99 (MSRP $389.99).
MacMagic is the Swiss Army knife of Mac utilities: It can perform scores of optimization tasks, from clearing gigabytes of storage to batch processing hundreds of files.
A MacMagic Lifetime Upgrades License is currently on sale for just $29.99 (A massive 70% 0ff MSRP $99.99).
Apple’s decision to put an A-series chip in the new MacBook Neo raised more than a few eyebrows. And doubts about its performance.
But comparing the MacBook Neo’s A18 Pro — which debuted a year and a half ago in the iPhone 16 Pro — with previous Mac processors shows that the A-series chip is surprisingly powerful.
The MacBook Neo is Apple’s newest low-end MacBook. Does that mean there’s no reason to buy a MacBook Air anymore? Would power users go straight for the MacBook Pro? I don’t think so. There are still plenty of reasons to buy Apple’s midrange MacBook Air vs. the MacBook Neo.
Apple did a good job differentiating the two computers — there’s no configuration of the Neo that overlaps with the Air. Picking between the two should be straightforward. If you want more than 512GB storage, 8GB of memory or support for multiple external displays, you should opt for the MacBook Air. If you don’t need that much power or high specs, the Neo will do just great for you.
Here are all the differences between the two laptops.
iOS 26.3.1 is ready to be installed on your iPhone starting Wednesday. Mac users got macOS Tahoe 26.3.1 at the same time. The new versions include bug fixes — which are always welcome. And iPad users can install iPadOS 26.3.1, too.
In addition, all three system software updates bring support for the Apple Studio Display monitors that just launched.
Apple unveiled the affordable MacBook Neo Wednesday — and on the same day Basic Apple Guy made a nifty set of wallpapers available for download. So if you’re not ready to buy the laptop or even wait a week or so for the wallpapers, you can still enjoy the related wallpapers — colorful and highly attainable — on your Mac and iPhone.
March 4, 2014: Peter Oppenheimer, the Apple chief financial officer who presided over a decade of skyrocketing growth, steps down from the company.
After becoming Apple CFO in 2004, Oppenheimer saw the company’s valuation soar from $8.8 billion to $471 billion. Luca Maestri replaces Oppenheimer in this crucial position.
Apple’s iPhone 17e is the most capable budget iPhone ever made. It packs the A19 chip, a 48MP camera, a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR display and, notably, MagSafe, into a $599 package. With MagSafe now onboard for the first time in the ‘e’ line, you’ll want a case that takes full advantage of those magnets while protecting your investment. Here are the best MagSafe-compatible iPhone 17e cases you can buy right now (with more surely on the way).
★★★★☆
The Belkin UltraCharge 3-in-1 Foldable Magnetic Charger quickly juices up your iPhone, plus it can power up your Apple Watch and AirPods at the same time. And with a folding design, it can stay on your desk or go on vacation.
I put the multidevice charger to the test in my home office. Here’s how it stood up in real-world use.
The Dyson V15 Detect stick vacuum comes with 10 tools and smart, laser-guided tech to make cleaning your floors quick and easy.
This high-powered vacuum retails for $599.99, but you can get a grade-A refurbished unit for just $339.99. Grab one now before our stock runs out.
Apple introduced the MacBook Neo on Wednesday, unveiling the company’s most affordable laptop ever. It comes in four gorgeous, vibrant colors — silver, blush, indigo and citrus — and costs just $599 (or $499 with Apple’s education discount).
“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, in a press release. “MacBook Neo is a laptop only Apple could create. It features a durable aluminum design in four beautiful colors; Apple silicon-powered performance; all-day battery life. There is simply no other laptop like it.”
The MacBook Neo is available for preorder now and will be available on March 11.
Apple’s just-announced MacBook Neo as well as the new M5 Pro/Max-equipped MacBook Pros, M4 iPad Air, M5 MacBook Air and iPhone 17e are now available for preorder. The new Studio Display and Studio Display XDR are also available to order starting Wednesday.
All devices will start shipping and hit retail stores starting March 11.
Hackers and malicious viruses are very much a concern when you’re on the web, but the biggest threats to your productivity and your privacy come from everyday internet hazards. AdGuard — an ad blocker for iOS, Mac, Android and Windows — helps protect your privacy by shielding you from the hidden bots that track your every online move and turn your data into currency for advertisers and bad actors both big and small.
When it comes to these threats, regular antivirus software won’t cut it. AdGuard, on the other hand, is specifically designed to deal with both annoying ads and the data crawlers hidden inside them. And it’s now cheaper than ever, thanks to a deep price cut. Get a lifetime subscription to AdGuard’s family plan for just $11.
As of Tuesday, Apple has refreshed its entire MacBook lineup with M5 silicon. And while the new machines bring meaningful upgrades across the board, buyers should brace for higher prices than last year.
Whether you’re eyeing the new MacBook Air or the pro-grade MacBook Pro, here’s a breakdown of what to expect at every price point.
March 3, 1975: The Homebrew Computer Club, a hobbyist group that will help spark the personal computing revolution, holds its first meeting in Menlo Park, California.
It becomes a welcome forum for computer geeks at a time when few others care about the nascent technology. Regular attendee Steve Wozniak and his friend Steve Jobs will eventually show off the first Apple-1 computer at the club.
Update: Apple launched the MacBook Neo on Wednesday. Learn all about it:
It looks like Apple itself spoiled this week’s biggest product reveal: A new laptop called the “MacBook Neo” briefly appeared on the company’s website Tuesday.
Apple quickly deleted the info after it leaked. While not confirmed, the name seems like it would align with the rumored features of the entry-level laptop. Rumors indicate it will come in fun colors, with a price tag low enough to compete with Windows laptops.
Apple on Tuesday introduced the Studio Display XDR with mini-LED backlighting as its new premium monitor for professionals. It replaces the Pro Display XDR in the lineup, though the new model is smaller and lower resolution.
Apple also introduced a second-generation Studio Display, its high-end monitor for prosumers. This includes a better camera, more speakers and other tweaks.
“Apple has led the industry in delivering the world’s most advanced displays for pros to do their life’s best work, and today we do that once again with the introduction of the new Studio Display family,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, said in a press release. “Studio Display gets even better with a new 12MP Center Stage camera and powerful Thunderbolt 5 connectivity. And the Studio Display XDR is a huge leap forward for XDR technology, with a mini-LED backlight, 2000 nits of peak HDR brightness, advanced color accuracy, and a 120Hz refresh rate, transforming workflows like filmmaking, design and print, and 3D animation. It’s by far the world’s best pro display.”
Using Apple’s all-new Fusion Architecture with “super cores,” the new M5 Pro and M5 Max chips that Apple unveiled Tuesday in new MacBook Pro models will bring more than enough power to handle Apple Intelligence and plenty of other complex computing tasks, the company said.
“M5 Pro and M5 Max are a monumental leap forward for Apple silicon, leveraging our new Fusion Architecture to scale the capabilities of Apple silicon while preserving its core tenets of performance, power efficiency and unified memory architecture,” said Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, in a press release.
“Both chips underscore our relentless pace of innovation, integrating the world’s fastest CPU cores, a next-generation GPU with Neural Accelerators, a faster Neural Engine and high-bandwidth, high-capacity memory — resulting in an unparalleled combination of performance, efficiency, and incredible on-device AI capabilities for MacBook Pro,” he added.
Apple’s long-rumored M5 Pro- and M5 Max-powered MacBook Pros are finally official. The new laptops look visually the same, but pack updated internals that promise a massive leap in performance.
“MacBook Pro with M5 Pro and M5 Max redefines what’s possible on a pro laptop, now up to 4x faster than the previous generation,” said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, in a press release Tuesday.