Apple Works on Adding Touch Screens to MacBooks, to Launch in 2025

Inno Flores, Tech Times 11 January 2023, 08:01 pm

Apple is developing and adding touch screens to its Mac computers, after being resisted from bringing this support a few years ago. Steve Jobs was known as the person who does not want this feature on computers, as he described it as an "ergonomically terrible" idea.

(Photo : Sam Wasson/Getty Images)
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO - AUGUST 17: Bottles of hand sanitizer sit next to a laptop showing a Zoom meeting as students begin classes amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the first day of the fall 2020 semester at the University of New Mexico on August 17, 2020 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Bringing Touchscreen to Macs

Several concerns were made by Apple in the past regarding adding touch screens to its computers.

One argument is that it does not work well on laptops, as the company offers a better version for people who aim to have a touch interface device, which works for an iPad. Another concern is by producing touchscreen Macs, iPad sales may decrease.

But several teams and engineers are currently working together actively on a new project by Apple, as the company develops bringing touch screens to Macs for the first time.

As per Bloomberg's report, Apple has been considering this feature very seriously since competitors have increasingly added this feature to its devices, including Dell Technologies Inc., HP Inc., Microsoft, Lenovo Group Ltd., Samsung Electronics Co. and Acer Inc.

Apple remains as the only company among major computer makers to not offer this feature.

Additionally, Mac sales became much bigger than before, and Apple wants to take advantage of offering a computer lineup as interesting as possible. By bringing a new feature on these devices, the company wants to retain the traditional design, which will still include a standard trackpad and keyboard.

Apple could launch its first touchscreen Mac in 2025, as part of the company's larger updates for MacBook Pro. But expanding touch support to more of its Mac models is also possible in the future.

Previous Stand

Before Steve Jobs' passing, he opposed the idea of bringing touch screens to Mac as he called it an "ergonomically terrible" idea. "Touch surfaces don't want to be vertical. And after an extended period of time, your arm wants to fall off," he stated in 2010 when the first iPad generations were released.

Meanwhile, 9To5Mac reported that Marketing Executive Tom Boger also opposed this idea in 2021. He stated that iPad is the world's "best touch computer", and bringing the touch screen support to Mac will not make it any better as Mac is totally optimized for direct input.

Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook also maintained Jobs' idea of not bringing this feature to Macs. When Microsoft Corp. released a touchscreen laptop in 2012, he stated that blending tablets and laptops was equivalent to combining a toaster with a refrigerator.

Also Read: Apple MacBook Air 15-inch Reportedly Releasing in 2023

Last 2016, Apple added a Touch Bar for Macs instead of adding touch screens. But The Verge reported that this feature started to phase out with the release of the redesigned 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros in 2021.

In a CNET interview with Software Engineering Senior Vice President Craig Federighi, the company made prototype Macs with touch screens. However, the company did not see the potential of releasing this up until now.