Many in the press simply don't UNDERSTAND the market for a product like this.
Recall that in its day the Apple M1 is/was a "high performance" chip. MAC's outfitted with a M1 are/were a joy to use & operate.
While Apple also sells iPhones and iPAD's outfitted with iOS & iPAD-OS these operating systems will not run DESKTOP applications.
Up until the release of the "NEO" a MAC-Air was the least expensive Mac which runs "MAC-OS". (desktop applications)
Surely while 'entry level' WIN11 devices can be had for <= $400USD the more expensive MacBook Neo can/will run circles around even WIN11 devices costing the same as it does.
Quotewith many commentators already consigning the compact MacBook to the scrapheap before it has begun shipping
I see we're covering our bases here with the article from yesterday claiming it was well received from fans and the media! Quote from that article:
QuoteDespite these apparent weaknesses, the MacBook Neo has been quite well received by both the media and users.
There's no harm in waiting to see how things pan out rather than drive or latch onto a narrative.
This could be interesting from a iOS developer point of view (realize this device isn't aimed towards that audience but..).
The only issue is I believe 16GB recommended for Xcode? Then again, this is literally running on A18 Pro iPhone grade hardware so maybe it doesn't need as much memory as there's nothing to emulate, itself is one big iPhone.
Regardless, this will sell well, likely become a best seller for it's intended audience. Just wish it came with double the ram. It's a good direction apple is going towards compared to the rest of the windows OEMs which continue to pump out €4000 laptops almost like they're oblivious to the huge gaping hole in the market, that is lack of quality budget price range devices.