Apple has officially unveiled its first touch-screen laptops, although they appear approximately 14 years after the release of Microsoft's Surface line. The announcement was made on Wednesday.
Despite the technological innovation, the cost of these devices is very high. The 14-inch model starts at $2,899 USD (equivalent to 48,183 rand) in the US, and the 16-inch version starts from $3,399 USD (56,490 rand). This means that after import into South Africa, these laptops could cost no less than 60,000 rand, making them a premium purchase item.
The new laptops are equipped with next-generation M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, which place a strong emphasis on advanced artificial intelligence capabilities while ensuring exceptional battery life of up to 24 hours. In addition to internal improvements, the new lineup features a thinner, lighter, and more refined chassis.
Available in 14 and 16-inch configurations, the laptops feature revolutionary Ultra Retina XDR displays, setting a new standard for laptop screens. These displays support an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz and provide peak HDR and SDR brightness levels of 2,000 nits.
The integration of touch functions into macOS allows the MacBook Pro to borrow popular elements from Apple's premium iPad line. This makes navigating 3D models and spatial content significantly more intuitive, and music production studios and virtual instruments gain an entirely new, tactile dimension.
The design overhaul also introduced the Dynamic Island to the Mac for the first time, thereby eliminating the notch in the professional line that had caused controversy upon launch and remained a source of disappointment across several generations of Apple Silicon-based MacBooks.
High-demand users can configure the M5 Pro and M5 Max models with up to a substantial 128GB of unified memory and up to 16TB of high-speed SSD storage. Sound quality has also seen a significant improvement: the redesigned six-speaker audio system provides 50% deeper bass and increased clarity, developing a system that already led in audio performance for laptops.
Running on macOS Sequoia with deep Siri AI integration, the new MacBook Pros set a dominant standard in the high-end laptop market for years to come.
During the presentation, Apple's hardware head stated: 'The new MacBook Pro with Ultra Retina XDR displays represents a monumental step forward for Mac. Ultra Retina XDR is the best display for laptops in the world; it combines advanced Tandem OLED technology with sophisticated algorithms in our display engine to deliver visual accuracy that professionals have dreamed of.' He continued: 'And with the magic of touch brought to the MacBook Pro, combined with the game-changing performance of the M5 Pro and M5 Max, we have created an entirely new way for professionals to interact with their content, taking their workflows to a whole new level. The new MacBook Pro is the result of deep integration between Apple silicon hardware and software, and there is simply nothing like it.'
