For years, Apple laptops have been known for premium performance—and premium prices. But during this week’s Talking Tech segment on KMSB Fox 11, Andy Taylor showcased a new option designed to make the Mac experience more affordable: the MacBook Neo.

Starting at just $699, the MacBook Neo is aimed at students, families, first-time Mac users, and anyone considering making the switch from Windows. Featuring a bright 13-inch Retina display, lightweight design, up to 16 hours of battery life, and Apple’s efficient A18 processor, the Neo delivers plenty of performance for everyday computing tasks including web browsing, email, office work, social media, streaming, and light content creation.

Andy also highlighted one of Apple’s biggest strengths—its seamless integration with the iPhone. Users can access Messages, share files effortlessly, and enjoy the growing capabilities of Apple Intelligence and Siri, creating a connected ecosystem that works together right out of the box.

While the MacBook Neo includes two USB-C ports, modern laptops often require adapters for legacy accessories and additional peripherals. That’s where the EZQuest USB-C Hub comes in. The compact hub dramatically expands the laptop’s connectivity, allowing users to connect USB devices, external storage, monitors, SD cards, wired networking, and even external optical drives through a single connection. It’s an ideal companion for students, professionals, photographers, and anyone who regularly works with multiple devices. The Below Video is our Segment from The TechtalkRadio Show featuring the MacBook Neo – Pricing did increase after Airtime but this gives you an overview of the Neo and EZQuest Hubs.

Andy noted that while power users editing large video projects may still prefer stepping up to a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, the MacBook Neo offers an impressive balance of portability, battery life, and affordability. Combined with the versatility of the EZQuest hub, it becomes a capable everyday workstation that can grow with your needs.

Whether you’re returning to the Mac platform, buying your first Apple computer, or simply looking for a reliable laptop without spending well over a thousand dollars, the MacBook Neo proves that Apple computing is becoming more accessible than ever. Check out the Full Show at TechtalkRadio.com

This week on TechtalkRadio, Andy Taylor and Shawn DeWeerd cover everything from the grand opening of Arizona’s first Buc-ee’s to Apple’s surprising new MacBook Neo, while also diving into Nintendo’s latest announcements, AI photography, retro gaming, and listener questions.

The show kicks off with a discussion about the excitement surrounding Buc-ee’s arrival in Arizona, exploring why the famous travel center has become such a cultural phenomenon and why thousands lined up for its opening.

From there, the conversation shifts into technology shopping during Prime Week, with practical advice on buying laptops and why physically handling a computer before purchasing can sometimes be more valuable than simply chasing the lowest online price.

Apple’s new MacBook Neo takes center stage as Andy shares his hands-on experience with the ultra-light budget Mac powered by Apple’s A18 processor. Shawn offers his thoughts on how the Neo is disrupting the entry-level laptop market while discussing its strengths, compromises, and who it’s best suited for.

Gaming fans won’t want to miss the conversation surrounding Nintendo’s announcement of an Ocarina of Time remake, the growing excitement around the Switch 2, retro PlayStation 2 classics, and whether the long-running console wars still matter.

The hosts also explore Google’s impressive Earth Studio tools that allow creators to produce cinematic flyovers from satellite imagery—opening new creative possibilities for video production.

Listener questions tackle Apple’s HEIC photo format, AI-powered photo restoration, and the growing debate over whether artificial intelligence should be used to alter treasured family photographs. Andy and Shawn share very different perspectives, making for one of the episode’s most thought-provoking conversations.

The episode wraps up with a discussion about the one piece of technology each host couldn’t live without, offering a reminder that while technology constantly changes, the way we connect with it remains deeply personal.

Whether you’re an Apple fan, gamer, photographer, or simply trying to make smarter technology decisions, this week’s episode delivers practical advice, spirited discussion, and plenty of laughs.

This week on TechtalkRadio, Andy and Shawn open with condolences for Justin, who’s away for a couple weeks after a loss in the family. From there, the conversation swings into Shawn’s very real-world tech life as a broadcast engineer at Notre Dame—juggling a marathon Saturday that included multiple live productions across different networks and platforms. They also touch on the frustration of missing major industry conferences like NAB and Infocom due to schedule collisions, while still keeping an eye on the one event Shawn refuses to miss: Gen Con, the massive tabletop gaming convention he’s attended for over a decade.

The middle of the show dives into the growing “ownership problem” in modern tech—especially as it relates to phones, computers, and cloud services. Andy and Shawn react to Apple’s latest headlines, including talk of a more affordable iPhone option and what a lower-cost iOS device could mean for people who don’t want (or can’t justify) flagship pricing. That naturally leads to a bigger discussion: device upgrade fatigue, the rising cost of PC parts like RAM and storage, and the creeping shift toward renting everything—software, storage, even processing power—through subscriptions and cloud instances.

AI is the big philosophical thread this week. They debate the ethical and emotional cost of AI-generated content—how it’s getting harder to tell what’s real, why disclosure matters, and what happens when companies replace human creativity because AI is cheaper and “good enough.” Andy shares a fascinating example using Suno, an AI music generator that created a shockingly convincing song featuring the show’s names—cool, impressive… and immediately uncomfortable once you realize what it represents. They also dig into the fine print reality: even when you prompt the creation, you often don’t truly own it, and rights can disappear the moment you stop paying.

In the second half, the show pivots back to practical tech help with a listener question about home security cameras. Shawn lays out why he’s a fan of Wyze—especially the value of an unlimited camera plan and SD-card local recording—while Andy weighs in with real-world comparisons like Google Nest limitations and other alternatives (including a window-mounted camera option he demoed on TV). The episode wraps with a fun maker-style segment where Shawn explains his DIY hack turning a Wyze smart switch into a portable “smart button,” plus a quick look at an RF/IR detection gadget Andy picked up for travel privacy and hidden camera detection. Finally, they close on fresh Apple rumors—an apparent leak pointing to a lower-cost “MacBook Neo”—and tease next week’s topic: AI journaling with Rosebud.

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In this Weeks TechtalkRadio Show, Andy and Shawn wrap up the year 2023 with a discussion on headphones. Shawn is broadcasting from a basement while the family celebrates the holidays, we will refer to that as a Dungeon! Shawn is wearing the Wyze Gaming Headphones and tells us about some of the good points versus what he wishes the Wyze headsets would have like his Steel Series headset which centers around dual audio. Andy wonders with so many options, Logi, SteelSeries, Hyper X, where is the original leader in Sound – Creative Labs. There are options for the SoundBlaster lines, and they still create some fine products. Shawn tells us about a couple of tech products he received during the holidays including the Wireless Battery Powered PC Duster. The ATEngus Cleaner has already been put to use. The guys talk about the need to clean the computer for the best performance.

Andy tells us about an issue with a SanDisk USB Flash Drive which suddenly is write protected, after a call with Support it was deemed defective. Andy seeks out a good disc management tool to try to fix himself. Shawn recommends the Subreddit for Data Recovery available https://www.reddit.com/r/datarecovery/.

Shawn and Andy talk about a video Justin sent them earlier in the week, a Spider board. Shawn talks about the level of tech this is but also serves as a warning to not chuck out non-working USB Drives and to be careful where they plugged into. Shawn tells us about a recent security issue with a web portal connected to Ubiquity devices which has since been corrected.

Shawn and Andy talk about some steps to take when you believe your system may have been compromised and how some users aren’t sure how to shut off the computer and the steps after it has been shut off. In a story in the news which had Apple 9 Series Watch and Ultra 2 not able to sell these in the US, Apple has pulled them from Online and In Store Apple purchase. This was due to a patent issue from Masimo. Since this show aired after asking the federal government to step in, which they refused, the Sales have been reinstated. Shawn has the AirBuds Pro and Andy is thinking about getting a pair and the benefits over the Pro versus Standard are discussed.

Andy talks about an article he saw at CNET regarding getting good audio from your television. This has been an issue for many viewers trying to make dialog more listenable, a soundbar may not always be the ultimate solution. While Netflix has done a good job with accessibility in audio, Shawn has seen some benefits with Roku TV’s and the Roku App on the Smartphone. Andy talks about Epic and how at the Site store.epicgames.com users may be able to find some discounted or free games to play.

Shawn tells us about ADSBExchange, A flight tracking site for finding aircraft around the world. Similar to Flight Aware from the User Experience Shawn says this is a bit better https://globe.adsbexchange.com/.

In this week’s show, Broadway and Justin talk with Andy about an article which ran in Esquire about celebs regarding themselves and styling as nerds, the difference between a nerd and a geek. The guys describe that difference. As a Windows Insider, Broadway gives us more thoughts on the upcoming launch of Windows 11 and shares what are some of the things for computer users to think about before migrating to the new operating system available for many PC Users with Windows 10 on October 5th. Broadway shares how things may be majorly different for many users, there was so much info when we first heard about Windows 11 regard TPM 2.0 and the guys discuss on why that may have changed

The battle between Epic and Apple is Confusing, when it comes to the legal challenges from both sides, the question is who won? Epic, Apple, or the Consumer?

Security Specialist Jeff Birner joins the show to talk about protecting yourself online and good security principles, tune in for tips and the discussion with Jeff Birner and his IT Company in St. Petersburg, Jeff’s organization can help companies as well as individuals maintain security on their systems and practices when interacting with home and work systems. Jeff also shares an well priced Wi-Fi router that is available from his company. Find them on the web at https://itcstpete.com

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