Apple sells first touchscreen MacBook Pro at $2,899
The new 14- and 16-inch laptops feature OLED screens and M5 chips, departing from a decade of company resistance to touch controls.
By Yasmin Kovalenko ·
Consumers can preorder a MacBook Pro with a touchscreen starting Wednesday, with units shipping on November 6. The 14-inch model starts at $2,899, while the 16-inch version costs $3,399. This marks the first time Apple has built a touch interface into its professional laptop line.
The new devices use a tandem OLED display that Apple names PROLED XDR. The screen reaches 2,000 nits of peak SDR brightness and refreshes at up to 120Hz. It has a 10,000,000:1 contrast ratio. Apple says the touch sensor is integrated directly into the display panel rather than layered on top, a design choice the company claims reduces latency.
Under the hood, the laptops run on M5 Pro or M5 Max chips. They do not use the M6 chip found in other MacBook Pros announced this week. A Dynamic Island feature appears on the screen to display Live Activities, a function previously limited to iPhones. The glowing Apple logo on the lid also returns on this model.
Apple cites specific use cases for the touch feature. Users can scroll web pages, zoom in on photos, and test iOS and iPadOS applications directly on the laptop screen. The company also suggests using the display to play software instruments. An updated API will allow developers to add touch support to their own software.
Physical dimensions have shifted slightly. The 14-inch model weighs 3 pounds and the 16-inch model weighs 4 pounds. Apple made both laptops thinner by reducing bezels. The 16-inch version is nearly a millimeter thinner than its predecessor, while the 14-inch version is half a millimeter thinner. The screen sizes increased to 14.2 inches and 16.3 inches, respectively.
The laptops offer up to 24 hours of battery life. They include a MagSafe 3 port, a headphone jack, an SD card reader, an HDMI port, and three Thunderbolt 5 ports. The M5 Max version supports four external displays, while other models support three. The audio system includes an enhanced six-speaker setup with 50 percent deeper bass.
This release reverses long-standing company positions on touchscreens. In 2010, Steve Jobs called touchscreen laptops ergonomically terrible. Former CEO Tim Cook dismissed the idea of converging tablets and laptops during a 2012 earnings call. Apple previously tested touch with the Touch Bar from 2016 to 2023 before returning to physical function keys.
Source: The Verge
