MacBook Neo: Why the SSD is significantly slower

The MacBook Neo is Apple's new entry-level notebook and is particularly appealing due to its low starting price of €699. This makes it significantly cheaper than current MacBook Air or MacBook Pro models. However, to achieve this price point, Apple had to make some compromises.

One area that stands out in initial tests is the SSD speed. Benchmark results show that the MacBook Neo is significantly slower at reading and writing data than newer MacBook models. In some cases, the SSD can even be up to eight times slower than in the current MacBook Pro.

The SSD is one of the most important components of a laptop. Among other things, it determines how quickly files are transferred, how quickly programs start, and how responsive the system feels overall.

It appears that Apple has installed a slower storage solution in the MacBook Neo. Initial indications of this come from a benchmark test by the tech website The Verge, which compared the device's SSD performance with other MacBook models.

Benchmark test reveals significant differences

According to The Verge, the MacBook Neo with A18 Pro chip and 256 GB of storage achieved read speeds of about 1,735 MB/s and write speeds of around 1,684 MB/s.

For comparison: A MacBook Air with an M1 processor and 512 GB of storage achieves approximately 3,422 MB/s read and 3,274 MB/s write speeds. The newer MacBook Air with an M5 processor and 1 TB of storage increases these values to approximately 7,049 MB/s read and 7,480 MB/s write speeds.

The MacBook Pro with M5 Max and 4 TB of storage performs significantly better, achieving read speeds of approximately 13.6 GB/s and write speeds of around 17.8 GB/s according to a separate test. The devices also differ in storage capacity, which can also affect the speed.

Up to eight times slower with large files

The difference is particularly noticeable during large file transfers. According to the report, the MacBook Neo's SSD can be up to eight times slower compared to the new MacBook Pro models.

For example, transferring a 100GB file takes about a minute on the MacBook Neo. On the latest MacBook Air, the same process can take around 30 seconds, while a current MacBook Pro only needs about 7 to 8 seconds.

Impact on system performance

A slower SSD doesn't just affect file transfers. Programs are loaded directly from the SSD, which can also slightly change app startup times.

The MacBook Neo also has 8 GB of RAM. When this RAM is fully utilized, the system uses a portion of the SSD as virtual memory. In such situations, a slower SSD can also impact performance.

MacBook Neo saves on storage, not on everyday usability

The MacBook Neo demonstrates how Apple was able to create a particularly affordable MacBook. The low price of €699 is achieved, among other things, through the use of a slower SSD.

Benchmark tests show that the storage performance is significantly lower than that of current MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models and can be up to eight times slower in certain scenarios. Nevertheless, initial reviews indicate that the device's overall performance remains solid in everyday use. For many typical tasks, the reduced SSD speed should therefore be barely noticeable. (Image: Apple)