It may seem ironic to be posting about a computer as a Chromebook alternative when the rhetoric lately has become very anti-ed tech, but the reality is, teens especially will need a computer at some point.
Having seen thousands of school devices, Chromebooks just…aren’t it, for me. They aren’t as versatile as we’d often hope, they have extremely limited storage, they aren’t powerful enough for entertainment use like watching content or playing games, and after a couple of years they’re so slow they’re basically unusable.
So when I heard that Apple had a new laptop that was priced at only $500 (with the $100 student/teacher discount) I was really interested. Skeptical even.
The MacBook Neo is much more akin to a MacBook Air than a Chromebook in terms of storage, capability, and processing. Plus as an Apple product, if you have an Apple Arcade subscription, you’ll have access to thousands of microtransaction and ad-free games, which you can play across all your Apple devices. Though it’s not a true “Gaming PC” contender, it would certainly be enough for casual gaming.
I’m using this device for free as a loan from Apple, and so far I truly can’t tell the difference between this and my MacBook Air. Plus the bright colors remind me of old iMacs and iBooks which I love.
If you are interested in a computer for your teen or tween and don’t want to go with something with only a few years of viability like a Chromebook, the MacBook Neo may be a very viable option. If you have questions about it please drop them below and I’ll give updates as I use it this summer.
