The MacBook Neo launched in March this year and suddenly, that is all that people around the world were talking about. And well, that is understandable. After all, this is the most affordable laptop by Apple (costing less than the latest iPhone). The MacBook Neo brought the macOS experience to a much lower price point without asking users to compromise on the basics. And now, months after its debut, rumour mills are at work, saying that Apple is already preparing its successor.
A recent report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says that the upcoming MacBook Neo could be equipped with a faster chip, more memory, and even new colour options. So, without further ado, here’s everything we know so far about the rumoured MacBook Neo 2.
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According to the aforementioned report, Apple is working on a new MacBook Neo that is expected to be powered by the A19 Pro chip. For context, the current MacBook Neo comes with the A18 Pro chipset, which is the same processor found in the iPhone 16 Pro. Now if the next-gen MacBook Neo gets powered by an A19 Pro chip, we can certainly expect some performance upgrades.
The A19 Pro reportedly offers around 10 to 15% better CPU performance compared to the A18 Pro chip. As for the GPU performance, it is expected to see an even bigger improvement, with gains of up to 40 percent thanks to Neural Accelerators integrated into every GPU core.
However, we can’t really expect the MacBook Neo to use the exact same chip as Apple’s flagship iPhones. According to Tim Culpan, Apple is likely to use a “binned” version of the A19 Pro.
Now let’s move on to the most talked-about aspect of the MacBook Neo – the RAM. When the laptop launched with 8GB RAM, it raised a lot of eyebrows. And it also left people wondering if it was enough.
But, with the new MacBook Neo, that might change.
As per reports, the newer MacBook Neo could come with a 12GB RAM instead. Now even though this is still lesser than the standard RAM in Apple’s other laptops, it would still be a welcome upgrade. The extra memory should make multitasking smoother, improve performance in demanding apps, and, more importantly, pave the way for some of Apple’s latest on-device AI features.
Now, let’s talk about some other expected changes. First off, the combination of the A19 Pro chip and 12GB of RAM could also unlock support for Apple’s more advanced on-device AI features announced during WWDC. These include a more accurate dictation experience and additional options for customising Siri’s voice. The current MacBook Neo does not support these features because of its A18 Pro chip and limited memory.
Apple could also bring us some new colour options for the MacBook Neo. The existing laptop is available in Citrus, Blush, Indigo and Silver colours. But as per the Bloomberg report, Apple is planning to update these colours periodically. That said, we don’t yet know exactly which colours could arrive with the next model.
Talking about the launch timeline, Apple could launch the A19 Pro-powered MacBook Neo sometime next year. Now it is to be noted that Apple has not officially confirmed any of these details, so all information is best taken with a pinch of salt.
What do you think of the upcoming MacBook Neo and will you buy it? Let us know and keep watching this space for more such updates.
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