Apple’s Touchscreen MacBook Pro Arrives, Alongside M6 iMac and 14-Inch MacBook Pro

Key points

• Apple's first touchscreen Mac, the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, uses a tandem OLED panel with up to 2,000 nits of peak brightness and a touch sensor built into the panel, with pre-orders from October 28 and shipping on November 6 ⁵.
• The touchscreen models run M5 Pro or M5 Max chips, not M6, and start at $2,899 for the 14-inch and $3,399 for the 16-inch ³.
• Maxing out the 16-inch model with the M5 Max, 128GB of memory and 16TB of storage reaches $14,549, with the 16TB option alone adding $7,000 ^{1 4}.
• Earlier in the week Apple also launched an M6 iMac from $1,499 and a 14-inch M6 MacBook Pro from $1,999, both with unchanged starting prices ².

A Decade-Old No Becomes Yes

Apple unveiled the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display at its ‘Pro and Tell’ event in Los Angeles. Mashable called it the biggest redesign of Apple’s premium laptop since 2021 ⁵. Pre-orders opened on October 28, with general availability on November 6 ³.

The reversal is notable. For roughly ten years Apple argued that reaching for a vertical laptop screen was awkward and that macOS was built for pointer precision ¹⁴. Johny Srouji, Apple’s chief hardware officer, said that display technology, custom silicon and software architecture had changed enough to alter the answer ¹⁴. Apple built the touch sensor into the panel itself to cut lag, and it reinforced the hinge so the screen does not wobble when tapped ⁵. In macOS, controls expand as a finger approaches ¹⁴.

Apple is framing touch as a secondary input. John Ternus said the Mac is primarily an indirect input device, with touch useful at certain moments ¹⁴. Apple pointed to tasks such as 3D manipulation, timeline scrubbing, color grading in DaVinci Resolve and Logic Pro ¹⁴. It also revived the glowing Apple logo on the lid, which is found only on the PROLED models with M5 Pro or M5 Max chips and went unmentioned in the spec sheet ⁶.

Specs for Every New Mac

MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display (14.2-inch and 16.3-inch). The tandem OLED panel offers a 10 to 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, up to 2,000 nits of peak brightness and a 10,000,000:1 contrast ratio. It covers P3 and Adobe RGB, with nano-texture glass as a $150 option ⁵. Per Gadget Review, it also covers more than 80 percent of Rec. 2020 ¹³. The notch is replaced by a Dynamic Island holding a 12MP Center Stage camera ⁵. Both sizes run M5 Pro or M5 Max chips and offer 24GB to 128GB of memory and storage up to 16TB, double the previous 8TB maximum ⁵. They are about a millimeter thinner and up to 0.7 pounds lighter than the non-touch models, at roughly three pounds for the 14-inch and four pounds for the 16-inch ^{5 3}. Ports are three Thunderbolt 5, HDMI, an SDXC slot, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6.0. It comes in Space Black and Silver ⁵. Apple claims up to 24 hours of battery life, and the Mac ships with macOS 27, called Golden Gate ¹³.

MacBook Pro 14-inch with M6. The design is unchanged. The M6 has a 12-core CPU, a 12-core GPU and a dual 16-core Neural Engine. Apple claims up to 30% faster graphics and 25% faster AI workloads than the M5, and a Neural Engine up to 1.9x faster ^{2 9}. Memory is 16GB, 24GB or 32GB, with 170GB/s of bandwidth on the larger configurations. Storage is 1TB, 2TB or 4TB ⁹. The 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR mini-LED display reaches 1,600 nits peak HDR ⁹. Ports are MagSafe 3, three Thunderbolt 4, HDMI and an SDXC slot, with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6 ¹². Apple quotes up to 24 hours of video streaming ⁹. These figures are Apple’s own, as independent benchmarks were not yet available ¹⁶.

iMac with M6. The 24-inch 4.5K display (4480 x 2520) is unchanged, as are the design and seven colors ^{8 11}. The base model has a 10-core CPU and GPU, with two Thunderbolt ports. The step-up model has a 12-core CPU and GPU and four Thunderbolt 4 ports, which support up to two 6K displays ¹⁰. Memory starts at 16GB and goes up to 24GB on the 10-core, or 32GB on the 12-core. Storage runs from 256GB to 1TB on the 10-core and up to 2TB on the 12-core ¹⁰. Apple claims up to 5x faster on-device AI and 2x faster graphics than the M4 model, plus Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and a 2x faster SSD ^{7 2}. Ethernet is optional at 2.5Gb ¹⁰. The M6 is Apple’s first 2nm chip ².

Pricing, Lowest to Flagship

Here is the lineup in ascending order of starting price, with the maxed-out figures at the end.

$1,499: iMac, 10-core. It has 16GB of memory and 256GB of storage, and Apple held its price after a June increase from $1,299 ⁷. Ethernet adds $30 ⁷.

$1,699: iMac, 12-core. The same base memory and storage, with a fully equipped iMac topping out around $3,299 ⁷.

$1,999: MacBook Pro 14-inch M6. It matches the previous M5 starting price, with 16GB of memory and 1TB of storage ². The top listed configuration, with 32GB of memory and a 4TB SSD, reaches $3,899 ²⁰.

$2,899: touchscreen 14-inch M5 Pro. It has 24GB of memory and 1TB of storage ⁴.

$3,399: touchscreen 16-inch M5 Pro. It has the same base configuration ⁵.

$4,499: touchscreen 14-inch M5 Max. It was listed as the cheapest M5 Max entry point ¹³.

$4,799: touchscreen 16-inch M5 Max. It is the highest base price in the new lineup ¹³.

$14,249 and $14,549: fully specced touchscreen models. The Verge reports the 14-inch tops out at $14,249 and the 16-inch at $14,549 ¹. Mashable walked through the 16-inch build. The M5 Max forces an upgrade from 24GB to 36GB of memory for $300, the 40-core GPU adds $300, and 128GB of memory adds $2,000. Moving from 2TB to 16TB of storage adds $7,000 ⁴. Nano-texture glass adds $150 ⁴. The top price is $4,400 above the previous fully specced MacBook Pro ¹. At 8TB, a $3,000 option, the 16-inch model would cost $10,549 ¹. Both outlets tie the high memory and storage prices to the ongoing shortage driven by AI demand ^{1 4}. XDA joked that the total buys 382 WinRAR licenses ¹⁸.

Context and What Comes Next

Pre-launch reporting had flagged a possible ‘MacBook Ultra’ name and a skip from M6 to M7 Pro and Max chips in late 2027 ¹⁵. Apple kept the MacBook Pro name and stayed with M5-series chips ¹⁷. Ternus declined to say whether touch will reach the MacBook Air or iMac, leaving it, for now, in a premium tier ¹⁴. Gizmodo notes the iMac still lacks OLED, which Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says is planned for later ¹¹.

Separately, Apple’s new chief executive has also been reshaping the company’s workforce. More than 400 positions have reportedly been cut since August across AI, mixed reality, hardware management and sales. Only 147 are backed by a California WARN filing, and Apple has not confirmed the full scope ¹⁹.

Companies mentioned: Apple (AAPL $343.83 ▼0.9%) • Adobe (ADBE $249.76 ▲0.6%)

Primary sources

1. Apple charges $14,549 for a fully specced touchscreen MacBook Pro (theverge.com) – The Verge's primary piece details the maxed-out touchscreen MacBook Pro. Base prices of $2,899 and $3,399 climb to $14,249 and $14,549 with the M5 Max, nano-texture glass, 128GB of memory and 16TB of storage. It notes the 16TB option adds $7,000, and that 8TB would put the 16-inch at $10,549. Published by The Verge.
2. Apple reveals iMac M6 and MacBook Pro M6 —without any price hikes (techradar.com) – TechRadar covers the M6 iMac and 14-inch MacBook Pro. It describes the M6 as Apple's first 2nm chip with a dual 16-core Neural Engine, claims of 5x faster on-device AI for the iMac and 30% faster graphics for the MacBook Pro, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, and unchanged starting prices of $1,499 and $1,999. Pre-orders open October 28, with shipping on November 6. Published by TechRadar.

Further sources

3. The MacBook Pro finally gets a touchscreen with M5 Pro muscle and an eye-watering price (digitaltrends.com) – Digital Trends introduces the touchscreen MacBook Pro: tandem OLED at 2,000 nits, ProMotion, P3 and Adobe RGB, Dynamic Island, a glowing logo, 14.2 and 16.3-inch sizes, M5 Pro or Max chips, and starting prices of $2,899 and $3,399 (M5 Max $4,499 and $4,799). Published by Digital Trends.
4. Heres how much a maxed-out touchscreen MacBook Pro will cost you (mashable.com) – Mashable walks through the $14,549 maximum configuration step by step, itemizing nano-texture glass, the M5 Max, forced memory bump, GPU, 128GB RAM and 16TB storage, and compares it to the $10,149 non-touch maximum. Published by Mashable.
5. Apple unveils new MacBook Pro with OLED touchscreen and thinner, lighter design (mashable.com) – Mashable's launch report covers the 'Pro and Tell' event, Johny Srouji's comments, and detailed specs: display, camera, weight, ports and storage. It also notes the 14-inch and 16-inch base prices, the November 6 release and the touchscreen's reversal of years of Apple resistance. Published by Mashable.
6. The biggest MacBook surprise of the day? The glowing Apple logo is back. (mashable.com) – A short Mashable piece highlights the returning glowing Apple logo, last seen on the 2015 MacBook Pro. It appears only on PROLED models with M5 Pro or M5 Max chips and is not advertised. Published by Mashable.
7. Apple Overhauls iMac With Powerful M6 Chip for 'Extra Snappy' Performance (pcmag.com) – PCMag covers the M6 iMac: claims of up to 1.5x productivity, 2x graphics and 5x AI speed versus the M4 model, the N1 chip with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6, two chip variants, prices from $1,499 and $1,699, up to about $3,299, and accessories and colors. It also notes the June price rise and Ternus's tenure as CEO. Published by PCMag.
8. Apples new M6 iMac is a powerful and colorful all-in-one computer (mashable.com) – Mashable's iMac piece lists two configurations at $1,499 and $1,699, the 4.5K display at 500 nits, memory and storage options and up to four Thunderbolt 4 ports. It also covers the claimed 5x AI boost and the seven colors. Published by Mashable.
9. Apple’s new 14-inch MacBook Pro gets M6 power and up to 24 hours of battery life (digitaltrends.com) – Digital Trends covers the 14-inch M6 MacBook Pro with a full spec table: CPU core layout, memory bandwidth, storage options, display brightness, battery, ports and audio. It also notes the $1,999 price and a $38.99 monthly option. Published by Digital Trends.
10. Apple refreshes the iMac with M6 chip, faster AI performance, and Wi-Fi 7 (digitaltrends.com) – Digital Trends covers the iMac refresh with a spec table covering the chips, memory, storage, ports and external display support. It notes macOS 27, the 18x claim versus Intel, seven colors and prices of $1,499 and $1,699. Published by Digital Trends.
11. The New iMac Doesn’t Have an OLED Display—but It’s Much More Powerful (gizmodo.com) – Gizmodo describes the M6 iMac as a major internal upgrade with unchanged exterior, two configurations, the memory pairing limits, port differences and the absence of OLED, which Gurman says is coming later. Published by Gizmodo.
12. Apples new 14-inch MacBook Pro has an M6 chip inside (mashable.com) – Mashable's report on the 14-inch M6 MacBook Pro gives the memory, storage, display, connectivity and battery details, and notes the 16-inch model was not updated. The starting price is $1,999. Published by Mashable.
13. Apple MacBook Pro Gets a Touchscreen and PROLED XDR Display (gadgetreview.com) – Gadget Review gives an overview of the touchscreen MacBook Pro: tandem OLED specs, color coverage, built-in touch and app compatibility, M5 chips and local AI, weights, ports, macOS 27 and all four starting prices. It stresses that performance figures are Apple claims. Published by Gadget Review.
14. Apple Said No to Touchscreen Macs for a Decade. Here Is Why It Finally Said Yes. (gadgetreview.com) – Gadget Review explains why Apple reversed its long opposition to touchscreen Macs, citing Wired interviews with Srouji and Ternus. It covers the hinge, thermal and macOS changes, touch as a secondary input and the unanswered question of other Macs. Published by Gadget Review.
15. Touchscreen MacBook Pro to Debut Today With These 5 Features (macrumors.com) – MacRumors' pre-launch preview covers expected OLED, touch, hinge, lighter design, Dynamic Island, M5 chips and price expectations of $2,899 and $3,399. It also notes possible 'MacBook Ultra' naming and the M7 plan for late 2027. Published by MacRumors.
16. Apple’s 14-Inch MacBook Pro Gets M6 Upgrade at the Same $1,999 Price (gadgetreview.com) – Gadget Review covers the 14-inch M6 MacBook Pro at $1,999, including performance claims against M5 and M1, connectivity, display, memory and storage, and who should upgrade. It notes the claims are untested. Published by Gadget Review.
17. Apple CEO John Ternus Teases Touchscreen MacBooks: 12 Final Rumors (macrumors.com) – MacRumors' pre-event post lists 12 final rumors for the touchscreen models, including OLED, touch, a firmer hinge, Dynamic Island and expected pricing. It was updated after the announcement. Published by MacRumors.
18. The new MacBook Pro maxes out at $14,549: here's what else you could buy for that (xda-developers.com) – XDA Developers uses the $14,549 maximum as a comic starting point, comparing it to 382 WinRAR licenses, 37 loaded Raspberry Pi 5 kits and a used 2020 Toyota Camry. Published by XDA Developers.
19. Apple Eliminates 400+ Positions as CEO John Ternus Pivots to AI (gadgetreview.com) – Gadget Review reports, as a separate development, more than 400 reported job cuts at Apple since August across AI, mixed reality, hardware management and sales, under new CEO John Ternus. Only 147 are backed by a WARN filing, and Apple has not confirmed the scope. Published by Gadget Review.
20. Apple’s 14-Inch MacBook Pro Gets M6 and Wi-Fi 7, Keeps the Same Shell (gadgetreview.com) – Gadget Review details the 14-inch M6 MacBook Pro: chip claims against M5 and M1, Wi-Fi 7, display, battery and the $1,999 start price. The top configuration with 32GB and a 4TB SSD costs $3,899. Published by Gadget Review.

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