🍎 Apple has announced a series of new gadgets, including two new entrants into its budget-friendly line-up, and it’s all the tech industry can talk about. Alongside the introduction of an M4-powered iPad Air, new Studio Displays, and M5-powered MacBook Pros, the California-based tech giant dropped the brand new iPhone 17e … and a USD 599 MacBook Neo. Needless to say, it seems the market is in for a shake-up. Let’s take a look.

First up, the 17e

An upgrade to Apple’s 2025 budget-friendly model, the iPhone 16e, the 17e one-ups its predecessor and offers most of what the flagship 17 boasts. Right off the bat, you’re getting more bang for your buck, with double the storage at the same starting price. The 17e also houses the new Apple A19 chip with neural accelerators, which translates to a significant boost in graphical performance and AI capabilities.

The 17e supports MagSafe charging, alongside Apple’s C1X cellular chip, which is said to be twice as fast as the one in the 16e. In terms of body and design, the new budget-friendly flagship is supposedly more durable than ever, reportedly offering 3x better scratch resistance. The display, however, is still locked at a 60Hz refresh rate, and eschews the dynamic island in favor of a notch. And while the camera remains a solo-lens operation, Apple says the A19 chip allows for “next-generation” images with enhanced focus and depth control. In terms of battery life, it’s more of the same, with claims of up to 26 hours of streaming.

So, who’s the iPhone 17e truly for? In its launch video for the phone, Apple seems to have taken a different approach, one that Apple loyalists didn’t feel was necessarily targeting them, but rather “ switchers,” as 9to5Mac notes. From the creative direction to the overall tone of voice, the video was starkly different from what we’ve come to expect from the tech giant, which begs the question: Has Apple realized its loyalists aren’t interested in its cheaper models? Or does it want a bigger share of the pie?

It checks out. The global smartphone market is projected to decline some 6.8% in 1Q 2026 on the back of the ongoing memory shortage driven by AI, CNN reports, citing data by the International Data Corporation. The 17’s success was enough to quell investor concerns for the time being, but it seems Apple is craving another piece of the pie to ensure it stays afloat. 2025 saw record growth in users making the move from Android to Apple for the first time, and the 17e might drive that growth even further.

And, speaking of switchers, it seems Windows-based tech brands are being given a run for their money…

The MacBook Neo

Taking the internet by storm, Apple dropped a budget MacBook — a feat practically unheard of from the luxury tech brand. Designed to make the “Mac experience” accessible to a wider audience, the MacBook Neo sports a 13-inch Liquid Retina display, is powered by the A18 Pro chip — the same chip the iPhone 16 Pro series boasts — and comes with a standard 8gbs of ram, promising 16 hours of battery life on a single charge. It’s no Pro by any means, nor does it match what the Air has to offer. But at that price point (and USD 100 less for students), it’s most definitely a force to be reckoned with, especially as it is set to run any app the average user might need.

In what is being called Apple’s smartest hardware move in years, the once-exclusive Mac experience is being democratized, and the tech giant is widely projected to see a slew of first-timers at its stores, according to CNET. “We want to get the Mac into as many people's hands as possible,” Apple VP of Hardware John Ternus said. While current Mac users are unlikely to make the switch to the Neo — as it would be a downgrade for the most part — the target audience seems to be Apple customers who own an iPhone but not a Mac and first-timers looking for a viable alternative to Windows-based budget devices.

Goodbye Chromebooks? This new addition to its line-up essentially establishes Apple as a major contender in the affordable tech market, Fast Company reports. Not only does its launch signify a new era for the brand — and potentially the end of an era for others — it’s a “gateway drug” to its ecosystem, as FC puts it. By getting first-timers (switchers) to put one foot in the door, Apple knows it’ll be making it difficult for them to walk back out.

…And it’s not just the MacBook Neo they’d be buying. Windows- and Android-based laptop users often spend a pretty penny on monthly subscriptions from the aforementioned providers, be it for storage or office suits or otherwise, and were they to switch to Mac, they’d be opting for Apple’s own subscription services.

Everyone’s playing checkers, Apple is playing chess. According to MacRumors, the Neo could help up Apple’s laptop shipments by some 8% in 2026, bringing the macOS market share to 13.2%, even as the broader market is estimated to fall 9.2% y-o-y this year. Last year, Apple’s Mac revenue came below expectations at USD 8.4 bn, down from a projected USD 9 bn, as revealed in the company’s 1Q earnings report.

On paper, the Neo is set to throw a curveball at the budget laptop market — whether or not it actually will is a question the answer to which will be revealed when it’s released on 11 March.

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