MacBook Pro with touchscreen in Apple’s future plans? Here’s what we know

Apple MacBooks have been the go-to devices for creatives to get work done—whether it’s video editing or simply coding—professionals find great functionality in them. Despite this, Apple has been hesitant to incorporate certain features into the MacBook, including a touchscreen display. The company has reportedly maintained a firm stance against adding touchscreens to Macs, a sentiment echoed by its top executives over the years. It’s simply not the type of interaction Apple envisions for its users. However, this stance might change in the future, as a report by AppleInsider suggests that Apple’s new patent filing hints at this technology making an appearance on MacBooks.

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Apple MacBook with a Touch Screen: What We Know So Far

Apple has been granted a patent titled ‘Sensing Utilising Integrated Micro Circuitry,’ which focuses on creating a touchscreen that features both LEDs and OLEDs, as well as “display chiplets and touch chiplets disposed in a visible area of the integrated touch screen.” The patent further highlights, “For example... the integrated touchscreen can also include electrodes disposed in the visible area of the integrated touch screen."

So, how do we know Apple might be planning a touchscreen for its MacBook computers? The patent indicates that the device in question is a personal computer with a trackpad and integrated touchscreen—likely pointing towards a laptop form factor.

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Apple and Touch Screen Laptops: How It Might Fit with the iPad

Currently, Apple has a well-defined lineup of devices, including the touchscreen iPad, which people use for a myriad of use cases such as entertainment and design. So far, Apple has positioned the iPad as a complementary device to the MacBook rather than a replacement. Similarly, integrating a touchscreen into a MacBook might seem counterintuitive to this approach (how iPadOS is not yet desktop-grade). 

That said, Apple has noted in the patent description that touchscreen technology has become more affordable and praised its ease of use and popularity. So, it would be interesting to see a touchscreen MacBook, but considering Apple’s reluctance in this area, it’s wise to take this with a grain of salt. 

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