Apple’s long-running refusal to put a touchscreen on a MacBook ended Wednesday with the redesigned MacBook Pro. The company unveiled 14- and 16-inch models with a tandem OLED panel it calls PROLED XDR, a Dynamic Island cutout and the return of the glowing Apple logo. The laptops start at $2,899 and $3,399, respectively; preorders opened immediately, with deliveries due November 6.¹

The reversal is more than symbolic. Apple says the touch sensor is integrated into the display panel to reduce latency, while its apps—and a new developer API—are being adapted for tapping, scrolling, zooming and more specialized uses such as testing iOS apps or playing software instruments. The company also trimmed the 14-inch model to three pounds and the 16-inch to four pounds.¹

But in early hands-ons, the screen rather than the new input method commanded the attention. One reviewer called the OLED’s peak brightness, absolute blacks, color balance and dynamic range “genuinely remarkable,” describing it as an enormous step up from the previous MiniLED panel. The lighter chassis was noticeable too, though the laptop remains unmistakably a MacBook Pro—not a fold-back tablet or Apple Pencil canvas.²

That distinction frames the skeptical view. Another hands-on found that, after Apple’s years of opposition to laptop touchscreens, the result is “just a touchscreen”: useful for a natural swipe or tap, perhaps, but without the breakthrough interaction Apple’s long delay seemed to promise. macOS offers enlarged controls in places, yet the reviewer’s verdict was blunt: “there’s also no magic.”³

Then comes the bill. A high-spec 16-inch configuration can reach $14,549—enough, according to a comparison reposted by Elon Musk, to exceed the price of a used 2020 Tesla Model 3 listed at $14,190.Elon Musk (elonmusk)⁴ Apple has finally made touch available on a Mac; persuading buyers it is worth luxury-car money may be the harder task.