iFixit published its teardown of Apple's MacBook Neo on Wednesday and delivered a verdict that would have been unthinkable a few years ago: this is the most repairable MacBook since 2012 [1].

The repair advocacy organization awarded the Neo a 7 out of 10 repairability score, a dramatic improvement over the MacBook Air's 3 out of 10 and the highest mark any MacBook has received since iFixit began scoring Apple laptops. The last MacBook to score comparably was the 2012 non-Retina MacBook Pro, the final model with user-upgradeable RAM and a replaceable hard drive.

The Neo's key design changes include a modular battery that can be removed without solvent or adhesive stretching, a replaceable SSD module, and a display assembly that detaches with standard pentalobe screws. The keyboard and trackpad are also independently replaceable, a reversal from recent MacBooks where those components were fused to the top case.

"Apple made real engineering choices here that favor repair," wrote iFixit's Shahram Mokhtari. "This is not a PR exercise. The internal layout is fundamentally different."

The improvements align with right-to-repair legislation that has passed in several U.S. states and the European Union. Apple has gradually softened its stance on repairability over the past three years, launching a self-service repair program and partnering with independent repair shops, though critics note the company still uses software-based parts pairing that can restrict third-party components.

iFixit noted that the Neo still solders RAM to the logic board, preventing memory upgrades, a limitation the organization called the machine's most significant remaining compromise.

-- KENJI NAKAMURA, Tokyo