Until today if they had less than around $800 to spend my answer would be "Don't buy a new MacBook from Apple" because there isn't one that cheap. Maybe look for a used or refurbished M1-M2 model.

Today it's the MacBook Neo unless you have a higher budget and want a nicer screen and more power. Then it's the MacBook Air, unless you do serious photography, video, audio, or development work then it's a MacBook Pro.

It's still a pretty simple, linear progression up the line.

Steve Jobs presided over an era where they were selling:

- A white plastic 13" MacBook

- An aluminum 13" MacBook

- 13", 15", and 17" Macbook Pro

- A high end 13" MacBook Air that thermally throttled and was more expensive than most of their other laptops