Show Notes
The panel looks at the Neo as a Windows machine, five brands building Neo rivals, Gurman's Neo 2 forecast, new school deployments, and a battery-heavy Troubleshooting Corner.
Top Story: Five Brands, One Target 5 Tech Brands Trying to Compete With Apple's MacBook Neo (SlashGear via Yahoo) https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/5-tech-brands-trying-compete-024500789.html https://www.slashgear.com/2257448/tech-brands-making-macbook-neo-laptop-alternatives/ Huawei Qingyun L420z (Notebookcheck) https://www.notebookcheck.net/Huawei-unveils-new-MacBook-Neo-rival-with-120-Hz-OLED-display-and-14-hours-of-battery-life.1402741.0.html What's Next: Gurman Maps the Neo 2 Gurman's Apple H1 2027 Slate (AI Weekly) https://aiweekly.co/alerts/gurman-maps-apple-h1-2027-iphone-18e-macbook-neo-2-m6-air Segment: Running Windows (and Android) on a Neo Parallels Desktop on a MacBook Neo (r/mac) https://www.reddit.com/r/mac/comments/1whf68e/paralells_desktop_on_a_macbook_neo/ Windows on MacBook Neo (r/macbook) https://www.reddit.com/r/macbook/comments/1wj0aro/windows_on_macbook_neo/ KVM Switch with MacBook Neo and a Windows Gaming PC (r/buildapc) https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/comments/1wgpk21/kvm_switch_with_macbook_neo_and_windows_gaming_pc/ MacBook Neo (r/BlueStacks) https://www.reddit.com/r/BlueStacks/comments/1wk8yaq/macbook_neo/ Neo in Education Nampa Switches to Apple as PC Prices Rise (Idaho Education News) https://www.idahoednews.org/news/nampa-switches-to-apple-as-pc-prices-rise/ Ball State Technology Store: Four Customized MacBook Bundles https://commcenter.bsu.edu/message/technology-store-offering-four-customized-macbook-bundles-1 MacBook Neo: Is It Good Enough for College Students? https://www.nssi.com/blog/macbook-neo-is-it-good-enough-for-college-students MacBook Neo Review (Good Housekeeping) https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/what-to-buy/a70780708/macbook-neo-review Gaming & Mods Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines on a MacBook Neo (r/macgaming) https://www.reddit.com/r/macgaming/comments/1wivoe7/play_vampire_the_masquerade_bloodlines_on_macbook/ The Neo Effect: How Apple's Cheapest Mac Is Changing the PC Game (The Verge) https://www.theverge.com/tech/904705/apple-macbook-neo-news-reviews-mods Troubleshooting Corner MacBook Neo Not Charging While in Sleep (r/applehelp) https://www.reddit.com/r/applehelp/comments/1wjayxq/macbook_neo_not_charging_while_in_sleep/ Need to Calibrate the Battery? (r/MacbookNeo) https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wkzu3t/neo_battery_usage_need_to_calibrate_battery_of/ Optimized Battery Charging: On or Off? (r/MacbookNeo) https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wee9vq/optimized_battery_charging_on_or_off/ Confused About RAM and Memory Swapping (r/MacbookNeo) https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wle6vj/confused_about_ram_and_memory_swapping/ Community Corner: Planning to Buy a Neo – Is There Better? (r/computers) https://www.reddit.com/r/computers/comments/1wgjs0i/planning_to_but_macbook_neo_but_is_there_better/ Neo vs MBAir Cost Considerations in Canada (r/MacbookNeo) https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/s/pyDufWF2EX Got a New Neo – Is My 2018 MacBook Still Worth Keeping? (r/mac) https://www.reddit.com/r/mac/comments/1whgmjd/recently_got_a_new_macbook_neo_is_my_2018_macbook/ Buyer's Remorse (r/MacbookNeo) https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wk4yd8/buyers_remorse/ "I Don't Like Some Fellow MacBook Neo Owners" (r/macbook) https://www.reddit.com/r/macbook/comments/1wl4blq/i_dont_like_some_fellow_macbook_neo_owners/ MacBook Neo Accessories (r/MacbookNeo) https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wkdkcf/macbook_neo_accessories/ On the Screen MacBook Neo 6 Months Later and I Respect Your Time https://youtu.be/foO1QakhjZE Is the MacBook Neo Actually a Scam? (Short) https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iu7Mw-_TrEg Find The Neo Notebook Sunday at 9 PM EST at YouTube.com/@TheNeoNotebook Email [email protected] ThePodTalk.Net
More from The Neo Notebook
One essay calls the Neo Apple's biggest win of 2026. Acer's CEO calls it a "common enemy," and HP answers with an OLED OmniBook 5.
A quiet news week, so: when the novelty fades, is the Neo still the right device - or does the iPad win? Top Story: Neo or iPad? I Re-Tried the MacBook Neo. It Made Me Love My iPad Pro Again — Manav Tyagi, Medium https://tyagimanav04.medium.com/i-re-tried-the-macbook-neo-it-made-me-love-my-ipad-pro-again-645335517240 Keep iPad Mini or Trade In Towards MacBook Neo? (r/mac) https://www.reddit.com/r/mac/comments/1x1cwvr/keep_ipad_mini_or_trade_in_towards_macbook_neo/
This week's Neo Notebook covers a Texas school district's 10,500-Neo purchase to replace Chromebooks, a help-desk segment on Neo setup and repair issues, what owners are doing with their Macs, and a Reddit roundup. Texas School District Ditches Chromebooks, Approves $11M iPad and MacBook Neo Deal — 9to5Mac: https://9to5mac.com/2026/10/02/texas-school-district-ditches-chromebooks-approves-11m-ipad-and-macbook-neo-deal/ How to Set Up MacBook Neo Child Safety Tools and Screen Time — Mashable: https://mashable.com/tech/how-to-set-up-macbook-neo-child-safety-tools-screen-time Target Disk Mode from MacBook Air to Neo — Which… (r/applehelp): https://www.reddit.com/r/applehelp/comments/1wwrth5/target_disk_mode_from_macbook_air_to_neo_which/ Bent My New MacBook Neo — What Would You Do in My… (r/mac): https://www.reddit.com/r/mac/comments/1wvr6ae/bent_my_new_macbook_neo_what_would_you_do_in_my/ Repairing a Neo (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wv73cf/repairing_a_neo/ MacBook Neo Suddenly Getting Hot and Draining… (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wuazl6/macbook_neo_suddenly_getting_hot_and_draining/ What Games Do You Play on Your Mac Neo? (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wwlpua/what_games_do_you_play_in_your_mac_neo/ MacBook Neo Sims 4 (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wwbph3/macbook_neo_sims_4/ As a Wedding Photographer, I Love My Neo (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wr7s6w/as_a_wedding_photographer_i_love_my_neo/ Neo and 34" Display (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wtojtz/neo_and_34_display/ Apple Support: Take a tour of MacBook Neo (see "Get to know your USB-C ports"): https://support.apple.com/guide/macbook-neo/take-a-tour-of-macbookneo-apd1628f4eb7/mac These YouTubers Need to Know That the Neo Isn't… (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wqu3cv/these_youtubers_need_to_know_that_the_neo_isnt/ Is There Any Free Way to Get Notch in My… (r/MacbookNeo): https://www.reddit.com/r/MacbookNeo/comments/1wwmy0z/is_there_is_any_free_way_to_get_notch_in_my/ Linux 7.4 to Introduce Initial Device Trees for… (r/linux): https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/1wx4n09/linux_74_to_introduce_initial_device_trees_for/
This week's episode tackles seven listener questions about whether a MacBook Neo can handle music production, video editing, game dev, and dental school, alongside a wave of new Neo rivals from Acer, Dell, and Google, Microsoft's choice to skip the budget fight, the Neo's surprisingly high repairability score, early macOS 27 Golden Gate reports, and resale-value questions.
Marty, Dave, Eric, and Brett unpack Dell's two-front move on the Neo — the colorful budget 14S and an XPS 13 price hike driven by the memory crunch — then work through a Reddit week heavy on macOS 27 reactions, buy-or-wait debates, real-world workload questions, and troubleshooting.