Review: Chuwi's $449 Unibook laptop is a funhouse-mirror MacBook Neo

The MacBook Neo’s Influence on Budget Laptops

In another time, the MacBook Neo could have caused a substantial realignment of the lowish-end laptop business. Sure, it has shortcomings compared to the MacBook Air, but it could have at least encouraged PC makers to start shipping consistently decent keyboards, screens, and build quality in the Neo’s $599 price window.

Intel’s Wildcat Lake and the PC Maker Response

The PC makers did start responding, thanks in part to Intel’s actually new non-Ultra Core Series 3 processors (codenamed Wildcat Lake). Intel has resisted its usual compunction to serve the budget market with aging, re-labeled silicon and has created a lower-end, lower-performance processor with the same building blocks (and the same manufacturing processes) as this year’s high-end, high-performance models.

The likes of Dell, Acer, Asus, and Lenovo began hopping on the Wildcat Lake train fairly quickly, announcing would-be Neo competitors. But it felt like most of them were having trouble matching the Neo’s barebones specs, let alone undercutting them.

Competing Prices Fall Short

Dell’s XPS 13 started at $599, but only for students. It would be $699 for everyone else. Acer’s Swift Air 14 was announced at $699, too. Sure, sometimes these offered features the Neo didn’t have. But the point of the Neo is that it eschews frills and frippery in favor of nailing the basics.