Neo vs iPad Air! Budget Tablet or Laptop?

Apple dropped two confusingly good budget machines at once: the $599 MacBook Neo (A18 Pro, 2.7 lb, smaller footprint than an Air) and the $649 iPad Air M4. I spent a week treating each as my only computer — power, screens, and keyboards — to see if the Air finally kills the budget laptop or if the Neo is too much value to ignore.

Both look peak Apple and both stick to 60 Hz. The Air’s Liquid Retina looks a touch better and less reflective, plus you get a landscape FaceTime camera and real touch — but the keyboard case is the whole game. Even with a solid modular ESR Shift case (huge trackpad, portrait kickstand, Pencil pouch), macOS multitasking and full Final Cut / Photoshop still beat iPadOS for real laptop work. Neo: $499 with education, built-in keys, I’d add $100 for 512 GB + Touch ID. Air: more RAM and M4 muscle, up to 1 TB + cellular, but duller colors and accessory tax. Honest take: Neo is the better laptop; Air is a great second device (reach for Pro if it’s your only machine).

Watch the full Neo vs iPad Air breakdown for side-by-sides, keyboard demos, chip/RAM talk, and when Pencil-first work flips the call. Final thoughts: if you need a laptop, get the Neo — Apple knocked it out of the park on value and fun.