Right behind the iPhone 17e, new iPads, and MacBook Airs, Apple also announced a higher-priced new laptop. It’s a multi-colored low-cost Mac ($599) that runs on the iPhone chipset, with most but not all of the hardware features found on the MacBook Air and Pro. All MacBook Neo models come with a meager 8GB of RAM, which can be a major productivity bottleneck for demanding tasks.
If you’re willing to pay a little more, the Neo has a 13-inch Retina display, a 1080p webcam, two USB-C ports, a headphone jack, and optional Touch ID. Much has been said about whether Apple is again marching to the beat of its own drum in a year of RAM shortages and AI obsession. This is a direct attack on cheap Windows laptops and poorly performing Chromebooks. Tempted? Check out our early impressions from Apple’s event earlier this week right here. Oh, and for everything Apple announced – we’ve pulled all the news together here.
– Matt Smith
Other big stories this week
Design-wise, it seems a little more secure than the company’s usual.
There’s no flagship Nothing Phone 4 this year, but the company has made considerable efforts to make its A-series almost flagships, including a notable design pivot with the Phone 4A Pro. The transparent back is now aluminium, and the trademark nothing aesthetic has been boxed into the camera unit. Maybe it looks more adult, but a little less fun? That said, the huge camera bump on the Nothing 3A Pro last year is no longer there. Both 4A phones are gorgeous slabs of smartphones. The company has also upgraded the devices significantly with better cameras, bigger batteries and better screens. Only the 4A Pro will arrive in the US later this month.
continue reading.
Secret upgrade.
Engadget
While MWC 2026 offered us a lot of Chinese smartphones ready to surprise us, established player Samsung managed to surprise us with its S26 Ultra a week ago. Sure, there aren’t a lot of huge improvements, but it does bring subtle upgrades across the board, along with an exceptional new display for anyone who cares about privacy.
Privacy Display is an extraordinary new feature – one we’ve never seen before on a smartphone. When you turn on the privacy display and look at the phone less than heads-on, everything goes black, like those privacy-sticker screen protectors, but at the hardware level.
The S26 Ultra can selectively activate the privacy display in specific circumstances, like when you receive notifications or open certain apps (like for banking or authenticators). The phone can enable this feature when you need to enter a PIN, pattern or password, although this is only for system-level prompts, such as your lock screen.
continue reading.
The company promises to put “filmmakers at the center of the process.”
Engadget
what could go wrong?
continue reading.
<a href