Apple's new iPhone 17e, MacBook Neo offer Koreans affordable prices amid ...

The iPhone 17e is on display during an event in New York City on March 4. [REUTERS/YONHAP]Apple recently released two lower-priced products in Korea — the iPhone 17e and the MacBook Neo — with prices starting at about 990,000 won ($660). The offerings provide midrange options despite the rising semiconductor costs that have pushed up smartphone and laptop prices.The products launched in Korea on Wednesday. Prices of devices such as smartphones and laptops have surged as “chipflation” — semiconductor-driven inflation fueled by growing demand for AI — pushes up hardware costs, but Apple has instead kept prices unchanged or lowered them.The iPhone 17e serves as the entry-level model in the iPhone 17 lineup released in the second half of last year. The base model with 256 gigabytes of storage costs 990,000 won. The price matches that of its predecessor, the iPhone 16e with 128GB of storage, but the new model doubles the storage capacity.The pricing positions the phone below rival flagship smartphones such as Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy S26, which launched at higher prices.When Apple released the iPhone 16e last year, some consumers criticized it as too expensive for an entry-level model. However, reviewers say the iPhone 17e offers good value for the price.The iPhone 17e runs Apple’s latest mobile application processor, the A19, along with the newest-generation cellular modem, the C1X. The upgrades double the processing speed compared with the previous model and extend battery life.The iPhone 17e is on display during an event in New York on March 4. [EPA/YONHAP]Apple equipped the phone with a 6.1-inch organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display featuring an antireflective coating that reduces glare. The exterior uses the Ceramic Shield material previously applied to the iPhone 17, improving scratch resistance. The phone also comes in a newly introduced Soft Pink color.The rear camera features a single 48-megapixel lens but supports optical and telephoto functions, allowing users to capture depth-rich images. Users can also edit photos after taking them, including changing the focus to highlight a person in the image.The device can also record 4K video at up to 60 frames per second and capture sound with spatial audio, which makes audio feel as if it comes from different directions.Apple also included its latest AI system, Apple Intelligence. The system enables features such as instant translation and “visual intelligence,” which provides information about objects captured through the camera. The feature did not appear in the previous iPhone 16e.During a demonstration using visual intelligence, the AI quickly identified a bottle of water placed on a desk and provided information about the product name, price and where to buy it.Apple also introduced the MacBook Neo, the company’s first lower-priced laptop. The device measures 1.1 centimeters (0.4 inches) thick and weighs 1.23 kilograms (2.7 pounds), making it the thinnest and lightest model in the MacBook lineup.Members of the media view MacBook Neo laptop computers on display during an Apple unveil event on March 4 in New York. [AP/YONHAP]The laptop features a 13-inch Liquid Retina display and a fanless design, eliminating operating noise. The laptop also comes in new colors such as pink, blue and yellow, along with silver and space gray.The base model starts at 990,000 won, while students can buy it for 850,000 won.Apple lowered the price by equipping the laptop with the A18 Pro processor used in the iPhone 17 Pro lineup. The chip handles everyday tasks such as web browsing, document editing and video streaming, making the device suitable for university students and office workers.In hands-on testing, the laptop ran smoothly even with more than 10 browser tabs open while editing photos and watching videos.A MacBook Neo sits on display during an Apple unveil event on March 4 in New York. [AP/YONHAP]Experts say the laptop may struggle with high-end gaming, but its overall performance exceeds expectations.“The MacBook Neo could become an attractive option for consumers who want to try Apple’s MacBook lineup,” a representative from the electronics industry said. “It will be interesting to see how it affects Korea’s midrange laptop market, which Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics have largely led.”This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.