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0 pointsgeerlingguy22d ago0 comments

Apparently the two USB-C ports are different specs [1]

  - USB 3.0 10 Gbps with DisplayPort support
  - USB 2.0 480 Mbps

Both support charging but only one supports higher speeds and DisplayPort (A18 Pro limitation, as Apple probably doesn't dedicate much silicon to USB I/O).

[1] https://www.macrumors.com/2026/03/04/macbook-neo-features-tw...

0 comments

kunai22d ago

Well the costs had to be cut somewhere. At least they put a headphone jack in it, so they're doing better than Microsoft on that front (who inexplicably removed it from the SP line)

quentindanjou22d ago

I don't think this is intentional to cut cost. I simply think that the chip was primarily made for devices with one port (iPhone, iPad) and this is a bit of an afterthought.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a future product with 2x USB 3.0 10 Gbps with DisplayPort support on the next generation, A19 Pro or A20 Pro maybe, if the product has enough success.

bombcar22d ago

This is going to be a primary complaint people have (even if it's not terribly important) - hopefully they have some circuitry that warns you if you're plugging something into the wrong port (e.g. a USB 3 device into USB 2 at slow speeds).

1 more reply

hbn22d ago

If they want to get these things into schools it would be insane to expect the schools to also supply everyone with AirPods or some other kind of wireless headphones.

wmf22d ago

I've heard wired EarPods are great or a USB DAC is under $10. It's still easier to have the headphone jack though.

elondaits22d ago

AirPods have too much latency for playing music. You want wired audio for running GarageBand or Logic Pro with a MIDI controller. They could have gone with a USB-C to audio adapter, but then you wouldn't be able to plug the MIDI controller and charge the computer.

... Only a few people make music with a Mac, but it's been an important part of its history, and Apple cares about it.

1 more reply

qingcharles22d ago

This is the answer.

et-al22d ago

Hey, it took courage to remove that headphone jack.

https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/07/courage/

raw_anon_111122d ago

This is 2026. iPhones use standard USB C headphones, you can charge your phone at the same time while using your wired headphones using MagSafe and you can even by low end $59 Beats Flex headphones that have all of the Apple magic.

I’m going to need HN geeks to get over analog headphones from the 60s

3 more replies

f311a22d ago

It's a mobile CPU. They did not modify it. Mobile devices run with a single USB port.

andriy_koval22d ago

> Well the costs had to be cut somewhere.

its investment into next generation of loyal apple users, they more likely be selling it at loss.

Tepix22d ago

Nope, not Apple

Cthulhu_22d ago

Makes sense, the iphone has only one port after all. Interesting that it supported a second one though, or maybe that's the Pro revision designed for this use case?

nevi-me22d ago

The second port is likely necessary for USB hubs that rely on both ports. I had one for my M1 Air. I assume it'd still work with the 2 different speeds, but I'd be curious to try it.

I'm going to get a Neo for my wife once it's available in my country.

w10-122d ago

> - USB 3.0 10 Gbps with DisplayPort support

I'd like to run the external display plus an external SSD at USB 3 speeds, so I'd be waiting for experience reports on whether the one port can handle both without constraining the filesystem transfer speeds.

ghrl22d ago

Since it's just USB and not Thunderbolt, wouldn't it use DisplayPort Alt mode for the display leaving data transfer untouched?

regularfry22d ago

Charging in and DisplayPort out on the same socket would mean an additional dongle or hub or something, so there's at least that reason for having both.

volemo22d ago

Couldn't one charge from the display connected to?

thewebguyd22d ago

Both ports support power delivery, so you can still be plugged in and use DisplayPort out.

stephenr22d ago

Not necessarily - you just need a display that has USB-C input and supports USB-PD.

wpwpwpw22d ago

The USB 2.0 should be the one on the back, so the charging cable does not interfere with me plugging and unplugging things from the good port.

Foivos22d ago

Unless you use a dock, where you plug your things in the dock. Then you would want the "good" one to be the one of the back so it looks more clean and also have easier access to the slow port in the rare case you want to plug something there instead of the fast dock.

At least we should both be happy that it exists, no matter where it is placed! This is a big improvement over the macbook 12 with just one port. This was too low even when using a dock.

pm9022d ago

Im surprised that they’re doing DP and not thunderbolt?

herpdyderp22d ago

IIRC it's because the iPhone chip doesn't have thunderbolt

QuiEgo22d ago

Thunderbolt would presumably make it much more expensive, the spec has a ton of USB features that go from “optional” to “required” to be able to go into TBT alt mode, like supporting active cables

locusofself22d ago

this new macbook does not have Thunderbolt

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

0 comments

kunai22d ago

Well the costs had to be cut somewhere. At least they put a headphone jack in it, so they're doing better than Microsoft on that front (who inexplicably removed it from the SP line)

quentindanjou22d ago

I don't think this is intentional to cut cost. I simply think that the chip was primarily made for devices with one port (iPhone, iPad) and this is a bit of an afterthought.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a future product with 2x USB 3.0 10 Gbps with DisplayPort support on the next generation, A19 Pro or A20 Pro maybe, if the product has enough success.

bombcar22d ago

1 more reply

hbn22d ago

If they want to get these things into schools it would be insane to expect the schools to also supply everyone with AirPods or some other kind of wireless headphones.

wmf22d ago

I've heard wired EarPods are great or a USB DAC is under $10. It's still easier to have the headphone jack though.

elondaits22d ago

... Only a few people make music with a Mac, but it's been an important part of its history, and Apple cares about it.

1 more reply

qingcharles22d ago

This is the answer.

et-al22d ago

Hey, it took courage to remove that headphone jack.

https://techcrunch.com/2016/09/07/courage/

raw_anon_111122d ago

I’m going to need HN geeks to get over analog headphones from the 60s

3 more replies

f311a22d ago

It's a mobile CPU. They did not modify it. Mobile devices run with a single USB port.

andriy_koval22d ago

> Well the costs had to be cut somewhere.

its investment into next generation of loyal apple users, they more likely be selling it at loss.

Tepix22d ago

Nope, not Apple

Cthulhu_22d ago

Makes sense, the iphone has only one port after all. Interesting that it supported a second one though, or maybe that's the Pro revision designed for this use case?

nevi-me22d ago

The second port is likely necessary for USB hubs that rely on both ports. I had one for my M1 Air. I assume it'd still work with the 2 different speeds, but I'd be curious to try it.

I'm going to get a Neo for my wife once it's available in my country.

w10-122d ago

> - USB 3.0 10 Gbps with DisplayPort support

ghrl22d ago

Since it's just USB and not Thunderbolt, wouldn't it use DisplayPort Alt mode for the display leaving data transfer untouched?

regularfry22d ago

Charging in and DisplayPort out on the same socket would mean an additional dongle or hub or something, so there's at least that reason for having both.

volemo22d ago

Couldn't one charge from the display connected to?

thewebguyd22d ago

Both ports support power delivery, so you can still be plugged in and use DisplayPort out.

stephenr22d ago

Not necessarily - you just need a display that has USB-C input and supports USB-PD.

wpwpwpw22d ago

The USB 2.0 should be the one on the back, so the charging cable does not interfere with me plugging and unplugging things from the good port.

Foivos22d ago

At least we should both be happy that it exists, no matter where it is placed! This is a big improvement over the macbook 12 with just one port. This was too low even when using a dock.

pm9022d ago

Im surprised that they’re doing DP and not thunderbolt?

herpdyderp22d ago

IIRC it's because the iPhone chip doesn't have thunderbolt

QuiEgo22d ago

locusofself22d ago

this new macbook does not have Thunderbolt

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse