Quicktake: There Is No Spoon, Apple

Apple, the company cowering to world leaders and still struggling to deliver on Apple Intelligence, announced an Apple Experience, which ran from March 2-4. This sounded so much like marketing speak that it almost put me off writing about them for another two years.

However, here I am, talking about Apple again. What a world. Now that the company has finished with its announcements this week, including the surprise MacBook Neo, here's a quicktake on my thoughts about each of them.

iPhone 17e

I found the 16e to be a strange iPhone last year. Considering this was meant to replace the SE line, what we got was a more expensive model, terrible storage choices, and no MagSafe. The iPhone 17e looks like Apple's attempt to fix these three points, as well as doubling the amount of storage and bringing in a pink model. As it's 10 years since the very first iPhone SE model landed in a similar pink colour, called Rose Gold, it's nice to see history repeating itself, despite Apple's AI push this time.

iPad Air M4

Same look, newer chip. If you own an iPad Air with an M1 chip or older, you could treat yourself to some additional benefits, like 5G, a faster Wi-Fi chip, and Centre Stage on the front camera. Otherwise, you're fine.

MacBook Air M5

If this had ProMotion, Apple's way of featuring a 120Hz display, found in a bunch of Macs, iPhones, and some iPads, I'd be buying this now. Apart from the M5 chip, this new MacBook Air has six speakers instead of four, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and a slightly bigger battery. If you still own an M1 Air, this is the time to upgrade. Otherwise, hold off.

M5 Pro & Max / MacBook Pro

Essentially, more powerful chips that now have two silicon pieces sandwiched together, along with some cores being renamed to better tell which core does what. If you edit video, design buildings, or game on a Mac for much of the day, these Pros are for you. It does feel like the beginning of a farewell tour for these MacBook Pros, however. So if you don't want to use your hands in some parts of macOS later this year, now's the time to upgrade.

Studio Display / XDR

I don't know why these exist in the form they do, and to have one without ProMotion at $1,599 / £1,499 is mind-boggling. Also, if you want the Studio Display XDR, a larger screen with ProMotion and more, it'll be $3,299 / £2999.

20 years ago, Apple LED Cinema Displays came in two models - $899 and $999, at 24 inches and 27 inches respectively. Despite their removal of a matte screen choice, these were still the displays to beat. In 2026, you have two displays that seem average at best, and this refresh is five years since the original Studio Display debuted. Let's do better here.

MacBook Neo

After 16 years, the Apple NetBook is here. $599 is ridiculously good value, but for students at $499, it's a steal. Packed with the A18 Pro chip, the same one that's in every iPhone 16 Pro/Pro Max, you'll be able to get some decent editing and gaming out of this within a few hours. The colors are great, the display looks good, and while the keyboard isn't backlit, is that something you use daily? I don't. At least the Neo doesn't have the butterfly keyboard. But it must be said, as Jason Cipriani mentioned in his newsletter, the announcement video is a great watch.

Ironically, macOS Tahoe could be to the Neo's detriment. It's one of the worst upgrades to macOS in recent years, due to the Liquid Glass overhaul. It gives the impression that the team either ran out of time to finish it, or they don't care how macOS functions anymore. Let's hope macOS 27 proves the former. Nevertheless, the MacBook Neo also opens up opportunities for users to discover plenty of third-party apps, but at a far lower price on macOS. That's encouraging, at the least.

But the A18 Pro chip is what stands out here. At this point, Apple should offer users a way of plugging in their iPhones to a monitor and use it in a 'Stage Manager' mode, similar to Google Pixel 10's Desktop Mode. Someone walking into a store who spots a Mac that has a similar chip to their iPhone will wonder why they can't do the same. Let's see it happen in iOS 27.

Some have spoken about iPadOS going away someday, and I mostly agree. But when it comes to iPad's lineup, I reckon it's going to be unrecognisable in the next few years, and the Neo is the start of that. To me, this Mac looks like an iPad Air, connected to a Smart Keyboard Folio, but running macOS. If you can use an Apple operating system that's over 26 years old, run almost any app/game you want, with none of the restrictions of the App Store, why wouldn't you buy a Neo for $599?

With the next-gen MacBook Pros set to have touch-features on macOS later this year, it feels inevitable that 2026 is the start of the iPad slowly disappearing. Nevertheless, expect the Neo to fly off the online shelves - moreso once macOS 27 lands.