Apple’s new MacBook Neo isn’t simply essentially the most reasonably priced MacBook by far — it’s additionally essentially the most repairable MacBook in “about fourteen years,” in line with an in-depth teardown by how-to web site iFixit.
The “large story,” in iFixit’s view, is the battery. Whereas older MacBook batteries are supposedly glued into place, the Neo’s battery is held by a tray secured with 18 screws. That’s a number of screws, however iFixit declared that “screws nonetheless beat adhesive each time.” In reality, this new association — which ought to make it a lot simpler to exchange your MacBook battery — “despatched cheers throughout the iFixit workplace.”
Different adjustments that reportedly make the MacBook Neo extra repairable: a flat disassembly tree, the truth that Restore Assistant seems to simply accept substitute elements with out criticism, and an easier-to-replace show and keyboard.
In the end, iFixit nonetheless had sufficient issues — like soldered RAM and storage — that it solely gave the Neo repairability rating of 6 out of 10. But it surely stated that for a MacBook, “that’s a robust rating.”