A smartphone chip in a laptop sounds like a mess, but it results in a solid laptop for the money.
By Roger Fingas Oct. 24, 2026 10:00 am EST Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock Add Engadget on Google: Google DiscoverIn retrospect, the MacBook Neo was Apple getting ahead of the curve. With tariffs and soaring memory prices in effect, the company must have known there was only so long it could keep the cost of its previous entry-level laptop — the MacBook Air — at a reasonable level. Sure enough, just three months later, the Air shot up by $200 to a new baseline of $1,300. Even at its current $700 price tag, the Neo is a comparative bargain.
