Apple debuts touchscreen MacBook Pro at $2,899

Apple announced its first touchscreen laptop on Wednesday, reversing a decade of design doctrine that rejected touch interfaces for Macs. The new MacBook Pro features an OLED display and enters the market at a starting price of $2,899 for the 14-inch model.

The device utilizes a tandem OLED panel branded as PROLED XDR. Apple states the display reaches 2,000 nits of peak brightness and offers a 120Hz refresh rate. A 10,000:1 contrast ratio differentiates it from traditional LCD panels. The company claims the touch sensor is integrated directly into the display panel to minimize input latency.

Pricing for the 16-inch model begins at $3,399. Preorders opened immediately following the announcement. The laptop ships on November 6. It runs on M5 Pro or M5 Max chips, distinct from the M6 processors found in other MacBook Pro models introduced earlier this week.

Physical design changes include a weight reduction and a return of the illuminated logo on the lid. The 14-inch touch model weighs 3 pounds, compared to 3.4 pounds for the non-touch M6 variant. The 16-inch touch model weighs 4 pounds, while the non-touch M5 Pro version weighs 4.7 pounds. The webcam occupies a hole punch in the screen, and a Dynamic Island feature displays Live Activities similar to the iPhone.

CEO John Ternus presented the hardware at the Pro and tell event in Los Angeles. He highlighted the support for gestures such as scrolling, swiping, and pinching. Apple modified macOS to accommodate touch input, though the company acknowledged the ergonomic challenges of interacting with a laptop screen remain.

The release concludes a busy week for Apple. The company launched an iPad Mini with an OLED display on Monday. On Tuesday, it released an iMac and an entry-level MacBook Pro powered by M6 chips. The M6 is Apple’s first 2nm processor, featuring a dual 16-core Neural Engine. Apple reports the M6 iMac delivers up to five times faster on-device AI performance than the M4 model. The iMac starts at $1,499 and arrives two years after the previous M4 generation.

These launches continue a steady pace of product releases since Ternus became CEO on September 1. Recent additions to the lineup include the iPhone 18 Pro, new Apple Watches, AirPods 5, and the HomePod Mini 2. The event also followed the recent debut of the HomeView smart display and the iPhone Duo, Apple’s first foldable phone.