We’ve had touchscreen laptops for years. Can Apple make them better?

A laptop featuring a touchscreen is hardly a novel concept in the broader consumer technology industry, where Windows and ChromeOS manufacturers have embraced touch inputs for well over a decade. Yet, Apple historically took a rigid, uncompromising stance against the idea. Tim Cook famously drew on the refrigerator-toaster comparison back in 2012 when evaluating Windows 8 and hybrid computing concepts. Long before that, in 2010, Steve Jobs forcefully dismissed touchscreen laptops as ergonomically terrible, asserting that touch surfaces simply do not want to be vertical.

The closest Apple ever came to bridging this divide was the introduction of the MacBook Pro Touch Bar in 2016. Spanning a seven-year run before its eventual discontinuation in late 2023, that horizontal strip of glass embedded along the keyboard deck functioned as a secondary, context-sensitive control panel. Ultimately, however, the Touch Bar proved to be a polarizing proof of concept that suffered from unrealized potential. By replacing physical function keys—and temporarily banishing the physical escape key—in favor of a non-deterministic user interface, it alienated many professional users without ever establishing an indispensable role in daily workflows. In contrast, a full touchscreen integrated directly into a laptop display is an established, proven interface paradigm, enabling users to interact intuitively with on-screen elements through direct taps, quick flicks, or extended stylus sessions.

As Apple prepares to pull back the curtain on this long-rumored device, observers are left wondering how the company plans to infuse its characteristic design philosophy into a touchscreen Mac. Industry whispers suggest that the newly minted touch-enabled MacBook Pro will feature a cutting-edge OLED display. While OLED technology is widely celebrated for delivering exceptional black levels and vibrant color contrast, it also carries a significant cost implication. Rumors point to the new notebooks adopting the high-end M5 Pro and M5 Max silicon chips, mirroring the traditional 14-inch and 16-inch sizing convention of contemporary pro laptops. Given that the current 14-inch MacBook Pro powered by the M5 Pro already commands a steep starting price of $2,499, factoring in an expensive OLED touch panel promises to push pricing into even higher territory.

Beyond the display panel itself, speculation suggests the machine may adopt a Dynamic Island cutout for the webcam, replacing the conventional notch found on recent MacBook generations. While the notch has proven to be a divisive aesthetic choice among users, many have grown to accept it as an unobtrusive element that fades into the background during everyday use. Transitioning to a Dynamic Island could introduce a minor visual refinement while potentially unlocking touch-based multitasking features akin to those seen on the iPhone, where background tasks like timers and media playback compactly tuck into the interface.

Perhaps the most anxiety-inducing rumor surrounding the new hardware involves a potential redesign toward a thinner and lighter chassis. Following years of an aggressive industry-wide pursuit of thinness that ultimately yielded compromised thermal performance and the deeply unpopular butterfly keyboard mechanism, Apple reversed course with the M1 Pro and M1 Max generation in 2021, accepting a slightly thicker and heavier profile in exchange for vastly superior thermals, expanded port selection, and reliable internal cooling. The prospect of Apple once again chasing slimness at the expense of raw performance, sustained workload capabilities, or battery endurance is a source of genuine concern for power users who rely on the Pro moniker for demanding tasks. Whether Apple can successfully shave millimeters and grams from its high-end MacBooks without compromising core performance remains one of the central questions heading into the announcement.

Equally intriguing is the fundamental mechanical execution of the touchscreen setup. It remains to be seen whether Apple will stick with a conventional clamshell laptop design or introduce a flexible hinge mechanism that opens the door to alternative usage modes. While versatile 2-in-1 convertible laptops—such as Lenovo’s Yoga series, which feature 360-degree hinges and integrated stylus storage—offer undeniable creative flexibility, it would be entirely characteristic of Apple to keep its initial entry into touch-enabled computing safe within the confines of a traditional clamshell framework.

Whether the device retains a standard laptop posture or incorporates convertible elements, questions also linger regarding Apple Pencil compatibility. Integrating support for a precision stylus alongside magnetic charging—similar to the ecosystem established by the iPad—would represent an intuitive choice for digital artists, designers, and creators. Nevertheless, industry expectations dictate that this device will remain fundamentally rooted in macOS rather than morphing into an oversized iPad. Reports indicate that Apple is developing a revised iteration of macOS, internally designated as version 27 Golden Gate, featuring targeted touch-friendly enhancements designed specifically for this new hardware while preserving the core architecture of a desktop operating system. Because this specialized machine is not expected to completely supplant the existing MacBook Pro lineup—which received a refresh earlier this year with Pro and Max-level silicon—it is anticipated to function as a distinct offshoot within the broader Mac ecosystem.

Ever since the monumental shift brought about by the Apple Silicon revolution in 2021, MacBook Pro updates have largely centered around incremental chip upgrades and modest feature refinements. The introduction of an OLED touchscreen model represents a seismic structural shakeup, introducing the kind of design unpredictability and bold experimentation that historically characterizes major Apple hardware shifts. Tomorrow’s event will ultimately reveal how Apple defines the correct paradigm for touch interaction on a personal computer, setting the stage for the next chapter in the evolution of the Mac.