Mac Neo Concept Could Be the Perfect MacBook Neo Companion

Photo credit: Yanko Design
Apple’s MacBook Neo has clearly struck a nerve, and it isn’t hard to see why people are already wondering what those same ideas might look like in a desktop form. Designer Sarang Sheth had exactly that thought, and the result is the Mac Neo concept, a compact desktop that takes everything that makes the laptop so compelling and reimagines it for the desk

This design is focused on sleekness, as it is noticeably thinner than Apple’s smallest existing desktop, allowing them to completely eliminate moving parts for cooling. Instead, they use basic passive airflow to keep it quiet, even if you’re hammering away at it for hours on end.

The color palette is quite welcoming and approachable, since they use the same four options as the laptop line, so you can have soft blush pink or citrus yellow, all in a smooth aluminum finish, which is a break from Apple’s customary plain metal tones. It gives the Mac Neo the impression that “this is a device that was picked, not just plopped on a desk,” and it would look just as good in your living room or dorm room as it would in the office.

The power comes from the same A18 Pro processor that powers the new laptop. So you’ll have six CPU cores, five GPU cores, and a dedicated neural engine to make it sing. Eigh gigabytes of unified memory makes everything zippy enough, and you won’t have to continuously swap files to and from storage. Testing the MacBook Neo indicates that it outperforms a slew of entry-level Windows machines in everyday use, and with so much more room to breathe in this desktop architecture, the processor stays nice and cool for longer.

They estimate the price to be roughly $400. This is primarily aimed for students, families, and anyone who is just getting into the Mac pool for the first time, putting it in line with many of the more basic laptops from other brands. As an aside, a separate power brick is included, which is beneficial because it allows them to manage heat better than if they put everything in a battery-powered laptop.