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TechQuiet 12d · day 19

Apple launches touchscreen MacBook Pro with OLED PROLED XDR display

Apple ends over a decade of resistance to touch Macs, but reviewers call the touchscreen feature an afterthought bolted onto an otherwise excellent laptop.

newest coverage 12d agosummary written 12d ago626 pieces1.6k likes & upvotes1.1k comments MastodonGoogle NewsNewswiresXHacker NewsRedditYouTubeBlueskyLobsters

What to know

  • Apple reversed years of executive skepticism, including Steve Jobs's, by adding touch input to the MacBook Pro alongside a new tandem OLED 'PROLED XDR' display.
  • Touch can be fully disabled via accessibility settings, and reviewers describe the feature as minimal rather than a redesigned touch-first experience.
  • Pricing starts at $2,899/$3,399 and reaches $14,549 fully configured, drawing sharp criticism online over cost.
  • Analyst firm TrendForce forecasts only 1.2-1.5 million units shipping in 2027, suggesting cautious early demand.

The dispute Whether the touchscreen is a meaningful, carefully executed addition or a superficial feature imposed without redesigning macOS for touch. · positions read across 133 posts and comments

most voices

Touch input on a laptop is pointless and most people will just disable it.

  • “My mouse is far more accurate and doesn't block my view... I just don't see myself wanting to use that.”

    joshstrange · Hacker News ↗
many voices

Apple is losing its design focus and quality, and this reflects a broader decline.

  • “Apple is not what it used to be… We see it in the hardware AND the software... I think they are starting to loose the plot.”

    dinga · Hacker News ↗
some voices

Touch could have real niche value for drawing, whiteboarding, or testing mobile apps.

  • “I wanted to draw in a whiteboarding tool... I would much rather use an active stylus or a pen display for artists if I could.”

    miguel-muniz · Hacker News ↗

Apple ManufacturerJohn TernusJohn Ternus Apple hardware engineering chiefSteve JobsSteve Jobs Former Apple CEOTrendForce Market intelligence firmAntonio G. Di Benedetto The Verge reporter

Apple launches touchscreen MacBook Pro with OLED PROLED XDR display
macrumors.com

How it unfolded 7 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesvideospostscomments

Peak 325 pieces in 5h at Oct 28, 10 AM; 626 pieces over 19 days (394 articles · 7 videos · 158 posts · 67 comments) Oct 23, 3 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Oct 23, 8 PM — quietOct 24, 1 AM — quietOct 24, 6 AM — quietOct 24, 11 AM — quietOct 24, 4 PM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Google News 1, Mastodon 1Oct 24, 9 PM — quietOct 25, 2 AM — quietOct 25, 7 AM — 4 pieces · 4 articles — Newswires 4Oct 25, 12 PM — quietOct 25, 5 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Oct 25, 10 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Oct 26, 3 AM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Oct 26, 8 AM — 2 pieces · 2 articles — Google News 2Oct 26, 1 PM — quietOct 26, 6 PM — quietOct 26, 11 PM — quietOct 27, 4 AM — 2 pieces · 2 articles — Newswires 2Oct 27, 9 AM — 13 pieces · 9 articles · 4 posts — Mastodon 6, Google News 4, Newswires 3Oct 27, 2 PM — 51 pieces · 36 articles · 15 posts — Newswires 30, X 8, Mastodon 6, +2 moreOct 27, 7 PM — 6 pieces · 2 articles · 4 posts — Mastodon 4, Google News 1, Reddit 1Oct 28, 12 AM — quietOct 28, 5 AM — 18 pieces · 16 articles · 2 posts — Newswires 9, Google News 5, Mastodon 4Oct 28, 10 AM — 325 pieces · 218 articles · 2 videos · 80 posts · 25 comments — Newswires 189, Mastodon 42, Hacker News 34, +5 moreOct 28, 3 PM — 74 pieces · 35 articles · 4 videos · 12 posts · 23 comments — Hacker News 23, Google News 17, Newswires 17, +4 moreOct 28, 8 PM — 16 pieces · 6 articles · 5 posts · 5 comments — Hacker News 6, Google News 5, Bluesky 2, +2 moreOct 29, 1 AM — 24 pieces · 14 articles · 6 posts · 4 comments — Newswires 10, Google News 4, Hacker News 3, +5 moreOct 29, 6 AM — 28 pieces · 14 articles · 1 video · 8 posts · 5 comments — Google News 9, Mastodon 7, Hacker News 5, +3 moreOct 29, 11 AM — 19 pieces · 12 articles · 5 posts · 2 comments — Newswires 7, Google News 4, Hacker News 3, +2 moreOct 29, 4 PM — 10 pieces · 7 articles · 1 post · 2 comments — Newswires 4, Google News 3, Hacker News 2, +1 moreOct 29, 9 PM — 5 pieces · 2 articles · 3 posts — Mastodon 3, Newswires 1, Google News 1Oct 30, 2 AM — 8 pieces · 3 articles · 5 posts — Mastodon 4, Newswires 2, Hacker News 1, +1 moreOct 30, 7 AM — 9 pieces · 4 articles · 5 posts — Mastodon 3, Hacker News 2, Google News 2, +2 moreOct 30, 12 PM — 5 pieces · 3 articles · 2 posts — Mastodon 3, Google News 1, Newswires 1Oct 30, 5 PM — quietOct 30, 10 PM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Oct 31, 3 AM — quietOct 31, 8 AM — quietOct 31, 1 PM — quietOct 31, 6 PM — quietOct 31, 11 PM — quietNov 1, 3 AM — quietNov 1, 8 AM — quietNov 1, 1 PM — quietNov 1, 6 PM — quietNov 1, 11 PM — quietNov 2, 4 AM — quietNov 2, 9 AM — quietNov 2, 2 PM — quietNov 2, 7 PM — quietNov 3, 12 AM — quietNov 3, 5 AM — quietNov 3, 10 AM — quietNov 3, 3 PM — quietNov 3, 8 PM — quietNov 4, 1 AM — quietNov 4, 6 AM — quietNov 4, 11 AM — quietNov 4, 4 PM — quietNov 4, 9 PM — quietNov 5, 2 AM — quietNov 5, 7 AM — quietNov 5, 12 PM — quietNov 5, 5 PM — quietNov 5, 10 PM — quietNov 6, 3 AM — quietNov 6, 8 AM — quietNov 6, 1 PM — quietNov 6, 6 PM — quietNov 6, 11 PM — quietNov 7, 4 AM — quietNov 7, 9 AM — quietNov 7, 2 PM — quietNov 7, 7 PM — quietNov 8, 12 AM — quietNov 8, 5 AM — quietNov 8, 10 AM — quietNov 8, 3 PM — quietNov 8, 8 PM — quietNov 9, 1 AM — quietNov 9, 6 AM — quietNov 9, 11 AM — quietNov 9, 4 PM — quietNov 9, 9 PM — quietNov 10, 2 AM — quietNov 10, 7 AM — quietNov 10, 12 PM — quietNov 10, 5 PM — quietNov 10, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 8 AM — quietYesterday, 1 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 11 PM — quiet 12–456–7
Oct 24Oct 26Oct 28Oct 30Nov 1Nov 3Nov 5Nov 7Nov 9now · 12:10 AM ET
  1. 7

    Reviewers say the touchscreen feels like an afterthought

    Hands-on impressions from The Verge and Fast Company praised the thinner, lighter design and the OLED display but described the touch functionality itself as minimal and unremarkable, more an added option than a redesigned interface.

    “But the touchscreen feels like an afterthought.”
    — Antonio G. Di Benedetto
    1. 3 outlets The touchscreen MacBook Pro is just a MacBook Pro with a touchscreen

      first by Mastodon, 12d ago · also MacRumors, The Verge

      1 more headline

    • I like the idea of a horizontal touchscreen on a laptop - like Jobs said, a vertical one has flaws. Some ideas for where to put the extra screen: maybe replace the touchpad with it. Maybe extend it to full laptop width, use half as touchpad, half as touchscreen, or let you swipe either one into the centre.Another idea - normally a laptop it a…

      caspianmHacker News12d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch
    • kcurry.bsky.social

      apparently the new touchscreen macbook pro is just a macbook pro with a touchscreen. didn't see that coming. the nice thing is, it's actually kinda nice. {

      kcurry.bsky.socialBluesky12d agoview on Bluesky ↗
    all of them →
  2. 6

    TrendForce forecasts modest 1.2-1.5 million 2027 shipments

    Market intelligence firm TrendForce projected that the new OLED touchscreen MacBook Pro will ship between 1.2 million and 1.5 million units in 2027, as Apple continues selling non-touch LCD models alongside it.

    1. 2 outlets 'Got My Car For Less': Apple Selling Touchscreen MacBook Pro For Rs 18.77 Lakh

      first by NDTV Profit, 13d ago · also MacRumors

      1 more headline
    2. 1 outlet Report: Apple expected to ship up to 1.5 million OLED touchscreen MacBook Pros in 2027

      first by 9to5Mac, 13d ago

    • nohillside@smnn.ch

      If computers with touch screens are so hot, why are there hardly any Windows laptops with touch displays? MacBook Pro with Touch: A Mac for the iPad Generation https://www. macstories.net/stories/macbook -pro-with-touch-a-mac-for-the-ipad-generation/

      nohillside@smnn.chMastodon12d agoview on Mastodon ↗
  3. 5

    Apple says it is 'only getting started' on macOS touch support

    Apple told 9to5Mac that the initial touch gestures shipped with the new MacBook Pro are an early step, with further macOS touch optimization planned.

    “At these prices, it's the end of Apple.”
    — spiritoftwilight.bsky.social, Bluesky user · source
    1. 10 outlets Apple announces its first touchscreen MacBook Pro: Price in India, features, availability and other thing

      first by The Times of India, 13d ago · also WIRED Middle East, Livemint, Engadget, Mashable, The Globe and Mail, Vocal +3

      11 more headlines
    2. 2 outlets Here’s how macOS is changing for touchscreens

      first by The Verge, 13d ago · also 9to5Mac

      2 more headlines
    • colesci.bsky.social

      The AI buildout’s cost to most people=not being able to afford compute(rs).

      colesci.bsky.socialBluesky13d ago4▲view on Bluesky ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 18 posts in this stretch

    • ain't no way i am affording one, but it would have been nice to choose if you want a touch panel or not, just like the matt finish.clearly it will be a while before it would be a standard across the lineup (air is still fanless, perhaps to a fault), so allow someone to continue the old way without needing additional complexities with a…

      rldjbpinHacker News13d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    • Techmeme@techhub.social

      Apple's touchscreen MacBook Pro is designed for the iPad generation, with an optimized macOS, and the company is right to move on from Steve Jobs' skepticism (Federico Viticci/MacStories) https://www. macstories.net/stories/macbook -pro-with-touch-a-mac-for-the-ipad-generation/ http://www. techmeme.com/261029/p15#a26102 9p15

      Techmeme@techhub.socialMastodon13d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  4. 4

    Fully specced model reaches $14,549, drawing price criticism

    Adding every upgrade to the 16-inch touchscreen MacBook Pro pushes its price above $14,000, prompting comparisons to car prices and social media criticism of Apple's pricing strategy.

    1. 13 outlets Apple introduces touchscreen MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR display

      first by The National, 14d ago · also The Verge, Quartz, CNET, MacRumors, Ars Technica, Mashable +6

      13 more headlines
    2. 6 outlets Apple shows first touchscreen laptops amid product blitz

      first by electronics.economictimes.indiatimes.com, 14d ago · also Straits Times, Reuters, CNBC, iTnews, CTV News

      4 more headlines

    • Apple is not what it used to be… We see it in the hardware AND the software.It used to be: think differentIt used to be: It just works…Now we got “apple intelligence” and subscriptions all over the place and also the lock-in feels stronger over time. Don’t even get me started that one can’t easily replace the battery oneself. They gradually…

      dingaHacker News14d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 32 posts in this stretch
    • alienrick.xyz

      Oh good, Apple discovered fingers. Decades of acting like touchscreen laptops were beneath them, and now it's a $2,899 MacBook Pro you can poke, glowing logo back too, per @cnbc.com. *buurp* You're paying extra for smudges, Earth. Smudges at a 10,000,000:1 contrast ratio.

      alienrick.xyzBluesky14d agoview on Bluesky ↗

    • Perspective means knowing when to give up past dogma and embrace today and what's to come. Touch on the Mac isn't a mistake. It's long past due. @ viticci has it exactly right. https://www. macstories.net/stories/macbook -pro-with-touch-a-mac-for-the-ipad-generation/

      johnvoorhees@macstories.netMastodon14d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  5. 3

    Users find accessibility settings to disable touch entirely

    Observers noted the new MacBook Pro ships with Accessibility options to turn off touch input completely or substitute a two-finger pinch-to-zoom gesture, later confirmed in a dedicated MacRumors report.

    “Turn off Touch input entirely…”
    — @viticci

    • The new MacBook Pro with Touch has Accessibility settings to: - Turn off Touch input entirely - Enable Zoom so you can pinch with two fingers to zoom in anywhere on the macOS UI

      @viticciX14d ago423▲view on X ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 21 posts in this stretch

    • Congrats to Apple on inventing the touchscreen laptop, a thing every other laptop maker invented 15 years ago and then mostly dropped because it turned out nobody wanted that

      jalefkowit@hachyderm.ioMastodon14d ago27▲view on Mastodon ↗

    • Oh wow, it’s like they’re trying less and less.When they introduced the Apple Pencil and people were like “haha it’s a stylus”, the thing was decidedly NOT a stylus (it actually couldn’t be used to control some parts of the UI). It was an actual digital pen, something that used to be specialized and expensive external hardware, and it worked…

      ToutouxcHacker News14d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  6. 2

    Apple unveils MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display and Touch

    At its Los Angeles 'Pro and tell' event, Apple introduced redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with a tandem OLED touchscreen (2,000 nits, 10,000,000:1 contrast), Dynamic Island, redesigned thermal and audio systems, a glowing Apple logo, and the same M5 Pro/M5 Max chips as before; pricing starts at $2,899 and $3,399, with preorders open and a November 6 launch.

    “Apple today introduced the all-new MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display featuring breakthrough tandem OLED technology.”
    — Apple Newsroom
    1. 42 outlets Apple’s first touchscreen MacBook Pro comes with OLED display, Dynamic Island and M5 chips: Price starts at Rs 3,49,900

      first by The Times of India, 14d ago · also Mashable, HotHardware, PPC Land, Bangkok Post, The National, Phandroid +35

      46 more headlines

    2. 23 outlets first by 9to5Mac, 14d ago · also HN Best, HN Frontpage, Shelly Palmer, Business Standard, TechEBlog, Inquirer Technology +16 · read ↗

    15 more claims →

    • Touchscreen MacBook Pro is official

      @jewissX14d ago187▲view on X ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 48 posts in this stretch
    • thattomhall.bsky.social

      Happy birthday, @johnromero.bsky.social ! In honor of your birthday, I got Apple to release the touchscreen OLED MacBook Pros. You're welcome!

      thattomhall.bsky.socialBluesky14d ago20▲view on Bluesky ↗

    • For work I have a Windows laptop with a touch screen and these were the only times I have wanted to use it:1. The trackpad on it is so god awful that using any sort of multi finger gesture is a non-starter. In this case the touch screen works significantly better.2. I wanted to draw in a whiteboarding tool. Drawing with my finger is not ideal so I…

      miguel-munizHacker News14d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  7. 1

    Apple teases imminent touchscreen MacBook Pro reveal

    Ahead of its 'Pro and tell' event, reports and a teaser video from Apple hardware chief John Ternus signaled a touch-enabled OLED MacBook Pro with thinner bezels and a Dynamic Island, reversing years of Apple statements dismissing touchscreen laptops.

    1. 12 outlets Touchscreen MacBook Pro to Debut Today With These 5 Features

      first by MacRumors, 14d ago · also The Verge, BGR, Trusted Reviews, iThinkDifferent, Digital Trends, Macworld +5

      15 more headlines
    2. 9 outlets Touchscreen MacBook Pro almost certainly has dynamic island

      first by AppleInsider, 15d ago · also iThinkDifferent, Gizmodo, iClarified, The Apple Post, Digital Trends, MacRumors +2

      8 more headlines
    15 more claims →
    • markgurman@mastodon.social

      NEW: Apple bets customers will pay a big premium for touch-screen, OLED laptops. The company has discussed charging $400 more, pricing the 14-inch touch MacBook Pro from $2,899. That could make the 16-inch model at least $3,399. https://www. bloomberg.com/news/articles/20…

      markgurman@mastodon.socialMastodon15d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 11 posts in this stretch

    • Pretty wild that Apple has spent basically 20 years telling us that touch-screen laptops are horrible due to ergonomics/arm fatigue and they are going to do it anyways tomorrow — and not address the problem they proclaimed exists whatsoever. Either way I am pumped.

      @markgurmanX15d agoview on X ↗
    • GuyNamedBrian@mastodon.social

      Personally, I’d much rather put a keyboard case on my iPad Pro; it just feels like it would be more versatile. “The way I see it, there are only two ways that the fabled OLED MacBook Pro makes sense. Either it has some knockout feature that hasn't leaked yet, or Apple has an especially compelling story for the features that have. In lieu of…

      GuyNamedBrian@mastodon.socialMastodon15d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. 5 outlets Apple expected to show first touchscreen laptops amid product blitz

    first by CTV News, 14d ago · also CP24, Investing.com News, Channel News Asia, Reuters

  2. 3 outlets I Just Tried Apple’s First Touch-Screen MacBook. The Question Is: Who Is It For?

    first by WSJ Tech, 14d ago · also The New York Times, CNN

    2 more headlines
  3. 2 outlets I just went hands on with the touchscreen MacBook Pro OLED — and it's jaw-dropping

    first by Tom's Guide, 14d ago · also Ars Technica

    3 more headlines
  4. 2 outlets Apple event LIVE: Touchscreen MacBook Pro expected today, iPad mini 8 and iMac M6 announced during 'Pro and Tell'

    first by Tom's Guide, 14d ago · also The Verge

    1 more headline
  5. 2 outlets The Touchscreen MacBook Is Finally Real, And Here's How Much It Costs

    first by SlashGear, 14d ago · also Mashable

    1 more headline
  6. 2 outlets On the day of the touchscreen Mac launch, Dynamic Island elements found in macOS 27

    first by Mastodon, 14d ago · also 9to5Mac

and 18 smaller pieces

What people are saying 9 voices from 5 sites · best of 133 · verbatim

Still unanswered
  • Will macOS actually be redesigned for touch, or will widgets stay too small to use accurately?
  • Who is the actual target buyer for a touch Mac that doesn't fold flat like a 2-in-1?