Apple (AAPL) Launches ‘Most Affordable Laptop Ever’ in Challenge to Windows PC Makers

FomoAnxiety · 2026-03-04T17:50:41+00:00

Apple has launched the MacBook Neo, its most affordable laptop at $599, targeting Chromebook and Windows PC markets amid rising memory-chip prices and declining device shipments.

FomoAnxiety

2026-03-04 17:50:41

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Apple’s AAPL -0.06% ▼ latest target with its refreshed lineup is the makers of Chromebooks and Windows personal computers. On Wednesday, the consumer electronics giant launched the MacBook Neo, a $599 13-inch PC, dubbing it its “most affordable laptop ever.”

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The launch comes as soaring memory-chip prices squeeze PC makers’ profit margins, and the market is bracing for its steepest drop in device shipments in over a decade. The MacBook Neo puts Apple in direct competition with Chromebook makers using Alphabet’s GOOGL +0.09% ▲ ChromeOS and producers of Windows PCs powered by Microsoft’s MSFT +0.21% ▲ operating system.

The largest such vendors include Lenovo LNVGY +0.36% ▲ , HP HPQ +0.29% ▲ , and Dell Technologies DELL +0.18% ▲ , with other significant players such as Acer, ASUS (ASUUY), and Samsung SSNLF +54.05% ▲ .

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