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- The MacBook Neo, priced at $599, is Apple's most affordable laptop.
- YouTuber Marques Brownlee hailed the MacBook Neo as a major market disruptor.
- Its release has sent shockwaves through the tech industry.
The MacBook Neo hit shelves last week, and it's turning heads.
The $599 MacBook debuted on March 4 as Apple's most affordable laptop ever. YouTube tech reviewer Marques Brownlee was among the industry insiders who attended the launch event, and he reviewed the new computer on Tuesday.
Brownlee, who has more than 20 million YouTube subscribers, kicked off the video with high praise for the MacBook Neo, predicting it will make budget PC makers "very nervous" with its capabilities at an affordable price. Indeed, one PC maker this week called the MacBook Neo's release "a shock to the entire market."
"It's potentially Apple's most disruptive product in the last 10-plus years," Brownlee said as he held the citrus-colored Neo.
It's more disruptive than the iPhone X — the first model to ditch the home button — and the $3,500 Vision Pro headset, he said.
It's not that Apple is creating anything particularly new, he said. It borrows elements from other Apple products to create something that's affordable yet feels high-end.
The MacBook Neo runs on an A18 Pro chip, the same as the iPhone 16 Pro lineup. That's no-brainer product for Apple since it's already proven that it can crank out millions of A18 Pro chips, helping lower the cost of the units, Brownlee said.
The "Apple touch," he said, is the aluminum chassis that makes the MacBook Neo the "best feeling, best built laptop" in its price class.
It has up to 16 hours of battery life and comes in the colors indigo, blush, citrus, and silver.
Brownlee recommended it most for students, writers, and older people.
Online repair community iFixit also reviewed the MacBook Neo and called it the most repairable MacBook in the past 14 years.
"The reason this laptop is so good is because it's easy," Brownlee said.