These $500 Windows Laptops Show That the MacBook Neo Has Serious Competition

In the present day, Apple introduced its new finances MacBook. At $599, it seems to be critically spectacular. Whereas I have never examined its efficiency, battery life, or show simply but, it might find yourself being arduous to beat at that worth based mostly on a few of the specs alone.

However that does not imply the competitors is not there. I wish to suggest a few Windows laptops offers that provide varied benefits over the MacBook Neo, displaying the place the Neo has each strengths and weaknesses.

First, try this Asus Vivobook 14, a laptop computer I have been blissful to suggest as a finances pc for the previous 12 months. In some ways, that is the Windows model of a laptop computer like the MacBook Neo. It makes use of a highly-efficient ARM chip, the Qualcomm Snapdragon X, which means it will get nice battery life and performs admirably in day by day duties. It isn’t fairly as skinny or gentle as the MacBook Neo, nevertheless it’s pretty transportable for a laptop computer at this worth.

Asus

Vivobook 14 (X1407QA)

Not like the MacBook Neo, the Vivobook 14 comes with 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage. That’s twice what you get in the MacBook Neo’s beginning configuration. Proper now, this configuration of the Vivobook 14 is on sale for $539. That’s a killer deal for these specs. It even comes with a more healthy mixture of ports, together with HDMI, two USB-A, one USB-C, and a headphone jack. That additionally means it might probably assist two exterior shows not like the MacBook Neo, which may solely deal with only one.

Do not get me mistaken—I am under no circumstances saying the Vivobook 14 is a slam dunk over the MacBook Neo. Based mostly on specs alone, I do know the Vivobook 14 is a severe step down with regards to the show. It is much less sharp, stretched throughout a bigger display screen, and the colour efficiency is not so good. The Vivobook 14 maxes out at 280 nits, whereas Apple says the MacBook Neo can go all the method as much as 500 nits. I’ve a hunch that the MacBook Neo will ship a significantly better show in nearly each regard.

There’s additionally the touchpad. It is a bit clunky to make use of, which is typical of finances Windows laptops. That is only a guess—however the touchpad on the MacBook Neo will seemingly really feel smoother. It is a mechanical trackpad (not like the MacBook Air’s haptic suggestions trackpad), however Apple has nearly by no means made a foul trackpad.

If you happen to’re not satisfied by the Asus Vivobook 14, I would additionally suggest the HP OmniBook 5, which is at the moment on sale for $500 and makes use of the identical Snapdragon X chip. Whereas it solely has 256 GB of storage, it has a significantly better display screen than the Vivobook 14, utilizing an OLED show. It isn’t any brighter than the Vivobook 14, nevertheless it provides you much better colour efficiency and distinction. It is also simply 0.50 inches thick, matching the MacBook Neo precisely in portability.