MacBook Neo Jumps $100 as Apple Blames RAM Chip Shortage

Apple is raising prices on the MacBook Neo across all configurations, citing a RAM chip shortage that has driven component costs sharply higher. The base model, which launched in March at $599, now starts at $699 in the United States.

The increases are uniform across the lineup, each configuration moving up by exactly $100:

• MacBook Neo (256GB): $599 to $699
• MacBook Neo (512GB/Touch ID): $699 to $799
• MacBook Neo (256GB/Education Store): $499 to $599
• MacBook Neo (512GB/Touch ID/Education Store): $599 to $699

The education pricing shift is the angle that deserves more attention. The MacBook Neo was already forcing Windows manufacturers into a defensive crouch at $599. At $699, that competitive pressure eases somewhat, and the education store entry point climbing to $599 removes one of the cleaner arguments for steering students toward Apple hardware. Students looking to access those prices still need to go through the Apple Education Store directly, where the discounts now look less dramatic than they did at launch.

Apple’s explanation is blunt by its own standards. “We have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly,” the company said, pointing to the RAM shortage as the driver. The MacBook Neo is not alone: prices are moving across Apple’s broader lineup as the chip cost crisis works through the supply chain.

The timing creates an awkward moment for a product that had been building real sales momentum. With the Neo already outpacing other Mac models in recent shipment data, a $100 increase at every tier tests whether that demand holds when the value proposition tightens. International buyers face additional variability, with Canadian pricing jumping from $799 to $949 at the base level, a gap that reflects both the component costs and currency conversion effects.