Acer has introduced a new version of its lightweight Go Air laptop, putting Apple’s affordable MacBook Neo firmly in its sights with more memory, additional storage and a faster display.

The latest Go Air configuration has launched in China with Intel’s recently released Core 5 320 processor, accompanied by 12GB of LPDDR5 memory and a 512GB SSD.

Pricing has been set at CNY 5,499, equivalent to approximately A$1,140 based on current conversion rates. Acer has not confirmed whether this particular configuration will be released internationally.

The machine appears closely related to the Swift Air 14 shown by Acer at Computex 2026, with the new model focusing on portability while offering specifications that could appeal to buyers considering Apple’s entry-level notebook.

Apple’s MacBook Neo starts at $1049, with 8GB of unified memory and 256GB of storage. Increasing storage to 512GB pushes the price to $1249, while memory remains at 8GB.

Direct price comparisons should be treated cautiously because Australian retail pricing can differ considerably once regional pricing, taxes and currency movements are taken into account.

Acer’s biggest advantage on paper is its display refresh rate. The Go Air features a 14-inch IPS screen with a 1920 x 1200 resolution, 120Hz refresh rate and DC dimming.

Apple uses a smaller 13-inch IPS display on the MacBook Neo, although its 2408 x 1506 resolution is considerably sharper. Apple also rates the screen for brightness of up to 500 nits.

The MacBook therefore has an advantage in resolution and pixel density, while Acer’s 120Hz panel can provide noticeably smoother scrolling, animations and compatible gaming compared with a conventional 60Hz display.

Connectivity is another area where Acer has provided more flexibility. The Go Air includes two Thunderbolt 4 connections alongside a traditional USB-A port.

Acer Go Air is the new MacBook Neo rival from Windows

The MacBook Neo also provides two USB-C connections, but their capabilities differ. One supports USB 3 transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps and DisplayPort, while the second operates at USB 2 speeds of up to 480Mbps.

Apple officially supports one external display at resolutions up to 4K and a 60Hz refresh rate.

Despite packing additional connectivity and a larger screen, Acer has kept the Go Air relatively light. It weighs 1.19kg and measures 12.99mm thick.

Apple’s MacBook Neo weighs approximately 1.22kg and measures 12.7mm thick, leaving little difference between the two machines when it comes to portability.

Acer has fitted a sizeable 70Wh battery and claims the laptop can operate for up to 19 hours between charges. The Go Air supports 100W USB-C charging, with Acer claiming the battery can reach 50 per cent capacity in approximately 30 minutes.

The MacBook Neo uses a smaller 36.5Wh battery. Apple rates it for up to 16 hours of video streaming or 11 hours of wireless web browsing.

Those figures do not provide a definitive comparison because Acer and Apple use different testing procedures. Independent testing would be required to establish which laptop provides better real-world battery life.

Powering Acer’s new model is Intel’s Core 5 320, a six-core Wildcat Lake processor manufactured using Intel’s 18A process.

The chip combines two performance cores with four low-power efficiency cores and can reach a maximum turbo frequency of 4.6GHz. Integrated graphics are included, alongside a neural processing unit capable of delivering 16 TOPS of AI performance.

Neither machine is positioned primarily for demanding professional workloads. Instead, Acer’s Core 5 320 and Apple’s A18 Pro target everyday computing tasks, making factors such as battery life, portability, connectivity and display quality particularly important.

With 12GB of memory, 512GB of storage, Thunderbolt 4 connectivity and a 120Hz display, the Go Air presents a strong specification-based alternative to the MacBook Neo.

The major question for buyers outside China is whether Acer will bring this exact configuration to international markets and, if it does, how aggressively it will be priced.