I wish the $500 MacBook Neo saved me from my Windows PC nightmare in college

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ZDNET's key takeaways

• A $599 laptop is doable if your education depends heavily on it.
• Aside from completing your homework, the MacBook Neo is an entry to the perks of the macOS ecosystem.
• Still, you shouldn't expect even older MacBook Air-level performance from it.

I didn't have my first truly capable laptop until I graduated from college and could finally afford a 13-inch M2 MacBook Air.

After paying for my tuition, rent, gas, and groceries, there was no way my parents were going to come up with an additional $1,100 for a laptop. So, I was stuck with a hand-me-down HP model that hissed and buzzed like it was on its last legs, couldn't make it through hour-long lectures without an extra charge, and became my trustee hand warmer in the winter ...