Apple's new affordable computer MacBook Neo has achieved early success in the consumer market. Its first batch of products is said to have been sold out, causing Apple to urgently place a large number of additional orders to suppliers Hon Hai and Quanta.
MacBook Neo will be available globally starting from March 11. It is reported that the delivery cycle of this notebook, which is priced at US$599 (domestic starting price is 4,599 yuan), has been extended to May. Apple also raised its sales forecast for MacBook Neo from 7 million units to 10 million units.
At the same time, the inventory of the A18 Pro chip used in MacBook Neo has become a key constraint limiting the production capacity of this notebook computer.
Apple has previously been using its remaining stock chips to power the MacBook Neo, but in limited quantities, which may force Apple to restart production of the A18 Pro chip. But this chip is relatively old, and restarting production may further squeeze Apple's meager profits on MacBook Neo.
chip dilemma
Apple CEO Cook recently revealed that the Mac product line set a record for its best first-week sales in history, especially among new users. The success of MacBook Neo is indispensable. It quickly became popular in the market as soon as it was launched.
However, much of the MacBook Neo's success can be attributed to the A18 Pro chip, as this chip was originally used in the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. Apple puts the remaining A18 Pro chips (jokingly called the residual version in the industry) after screening during the smartphone production process directly into the MacBook Neo production line, greatly reducing the production cost of this computer product.
If Apple resumes production of this chip, a core question will be where to squeeze out new production capacity. Judging from the estimated sales of MacBook Neo, Apple may only need to produce an additional 2.3 million to 7 million chips, which is a relatively small number for Apple.
However, the A18 Pro chip is produced using TSMC's 3-nanometer process, which is currently operating at almost full capacity. This means that if Apple wants to produce more chips, it must compete with other technology giants for TSMC's advanced production capacity, which will greatly increase the unit cost of each chip.
If Apple increases the price of MacBook Neo due to chip issues, it may affect the future brand image of this series of products. Apple had also previously planned to release the next generation of Neo products next year, which is likely to use the A19 Pro chip of the iPhone 17 Pro series.
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