In this video I compare the M1 MacBook Air to the new MacBook Neo and try to figure out how close they really are—because on paper, they’re surprisingly similar. Price is all over the place: the Neo starts at $5.99 (or $4.99 for students), and the M1 Air is floating around Walmart for like $400-ish (your price may vary). The displays are basically the same size (13 vs 13.3), but you’re looking at Liquid Retina on the Neo versus Retina on the Air. The bigger question is the chip: the Neo is rocking an A18 Pro (phone chip) while the Air has the M1 that everyone already knows and loves. I break down the stuff that actually matters day-to-day: multitasking, cores, RAM/storage, battery, keyboard/trackpad, ports, and wireless. Both start at 8GB RAM and 256GB storage, both get Apple Intelligence, and both can be great for school. But there are some gotchas—like Touch ID on the Neo only if you buy the 512GB model, no backlit keyboard on the Neo, and no Thunderbolt (just USB 3 and USB 2). My takeaway: if they’re the same price, I’d lean M1 because it’s proven. Overall it’s a toss-up depending on what you care about, but don’t buy either expecting a powerhouse—think “Apple version of a Chromebook.”