It didn’t seem that this would be the case during the first half of the event, but Microsoft really managed to impress people with its announcements on Wednesday. The new Surface Book laptop is a beast, and the Surface Studio offers a fresh new take on the all-in-one PC. In light of that, Apple had some work to do if it hoped to steal back the spotlight and turn everyone’s attention back to its refreshed Mac lineup.
There were several big announcements made during Apple’s October 2016 event, but the updated MacBook Pro and its hot new OLED touch bar were obviously the stars of the show. Is the new Touch Bar a gimmick? Exactly what new features does it provide? And is there anything else about Apple’s next-generation MacBook Pro work getting excited about? You’ll find everything you need to know about Apple’s new MacBook Pro 2016 right here in this post.
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Colors
Apple’s next-generation MacBook Pro features a brand new aluminum design that, as rumored, includes a new OLED touchscreen at the top of the keyboard. as far as colors go, it comes in silver and space gray — the latter being a bit of an odd choice considering there is no longer a space gray iPhone.
Size
The new 13-inch MacBook Pro model is 23% smaller in volume than the previous-generation version, and it’s just 14.9mm thick. Of course, it’s also much lighter than the old model.
The 15-inch Pro is 15.5mm thick and 20% smaller in volume than the old model. It weighs just 4 pounds, which is half a pound less than the old model.
Trackpad
The new Force Touch trackpad is twice as big as the one on the old model. It features the same kind of enhanced haptic feedback as the home button on the iPhone, and it is… huge.
Touch Bar
A new OLED Retina display with gesture support and multi-touch replaces the function key row on Apple’s keyboard. It’s awesome.
The Touch Bar gives users access to all the standard function key functions so nothing is lost, but it also adapts to each app that you’re in. It can also provide new surfaces and controls for certain apps. For example you can scrub through a video in Final Cut or flip through images in the Photos app by sliding your finger along the photos on the Touch Bar.
Quick Type
Apple’s new Touch Bar also shows Quick Type suggestions as you type. As anyone with an iPhone or iPad knows, Quick Type displays word, emoji and other suggestions as you type, and it learns and gets better as you continue to use it.
Touch ID
A new second-generation Touch ID fingerprint scanner is embedded beneath sapphire crystal on the right end of the Touch Bar. Touch ID can be used to authenticate Apple Pay purchases, unlock the MacBook Pro and more.
Display
The new wide-color screen is 67% brighter, 67% better contrast ratio and 25% more colors than Apple’s previous-generation MacBook Pro.
Specs
Wooooh nelly… check out the new MacBook Pro’s specs right here.
Battery
What are we looking at in terms of battery life? Both the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models will last up to 10 hours per charge.
Price
The 13-inch MacBook Pro model will start at $1,799 and the 15-inch model starts at $2,399. The entry-level MacBook Pro without the Touch Bar starts at $1,499.
Release Date
Preorders begin today and the new Touch Bar models begin shipping in 2-3 weeks. The entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro is available in stores beginning today.
