Apple’s First Touchscreen MacBook Pro Is Here — But It Costs £2,899 in the UK
Apple's first touchscreen MacBook Pro is official. UK prices start at £2,899 for the tandem OLED PROLED XDR model — but the cheaper £1,999 MacBook Pro actually has an M6 chip. Here's what UK buyers need to know.
Apple has finally announced a touchscreen MacBook Pro. Revealed on 28 October 2026, the new 14-inch and 16-inch models pair a tandem OLED display with touch controls, a thinner chassis and Apple's M5 Pro or M5 Max chips. UK pre-orders are open now, with availability from Friday 6 November. The catch? Prices begin at £2,899 — £900 more than the entry-level M6 MacBook Pro announced a day earlier.
That £900 comparison is between different performance tiers, not simply the price of adding a touchscreen. Here's what British buyers are actually getting, what Apple has confirmed, and who should consider the cheaper model instead.
How much is the touchscreen MacBook Pro in the UK?
Apple's official UK announcement confirms the following starting prices. These are Apple's published launch prices, not retailer discounts or currency conversions.
| New PROLED XDR MacBook Pro | UK starting price | Education price |
|---|---|---|
| 14-inch, M5 Pro | £2,899 | £2,749 |
| 16-inch, M5 Pro | £3,399 | £3,199 |
| 14-inch, M5 Max | £4,499 | £4,199 |
| 16-inch, M5 Max | £4,799 | £4,499 |
Pre-orders opened on 28 October 2026 in the UK. Apple says deliveries and in-store availability begin on 6 November. Extra memory, storage and optional finishes can increase the final price. The education figures are for eligible customers.
What is actually new? OLED, touch and a lighter Mac
The headline upgrade is the PROLED XDR display, Apple's name for its new tandem OLED screen. Apple specifies a variable refresh rate of up to 120Hz, support for P3 and Adobe RGB colour spaces, and up to 2,000 nits of peak HDR and SDR brightness. These are manufacturer specifications; independent testing is needed to establish real-world sustained brightness, battery life and display performance.
For the first time, MacBook Pro owners can interact directly with the display: scrolling, pinching to zoom, dragging items and using touch controls in supported creative applications. Apple says macOS can translate touch input into clicks in many existing apps, while developers can optimise interfaces specifically for touch. Some named third-party touch experiences are due later in 2026 rather than necessarily on launch day.
Apple has also redesigned the hinge for more stable touchscreen use. The new 14-inch model weighs approximately 3lb (1.36kg), while the 16-inch is approximately 4lb (1.81kg), according to Apple, although weight varies by configuration. The redesigned machines retain a keyboard and trackpad; touch is an additional way to work, not a replacement.
Why does the OLED MacBook have M5 Pro instead of M6?
Here's the potentially confusing part. On 27 October, Apple announced a separate 14-inch MacBook Pro with the newer M6 chip, starting at £1,999 in the UK. The following day's redesigned touchscreen models use M5 Pro and M5 Max, not M6.
That does not automatically make the M6 machine faster. The standard M6 and the higher-tier M5 Pro/Max are designed for different workloads. Pro and Max configurations target demanding video editing, 3D work, engineering and local AI projects, while the standard M6 offers a lower entry price for everyday productivity and a broad range of creative tasks. Compare the specific CPU, GPU, memory and software requirements rather than choosing by generation number alone.
The £1,999 M6 model also keeps a Liquid Retina XDR display without touch. It is not the same screen technology or design as the £2,899 PROLED model.
Dynamic Island, battery and connections
The touchscreen models introduce Dynamic Island on Mac, with access to features such as Spotlight, Live Activities and Siri AI. Apple notes that some functions depend on Siri AI being available and enabled, and that AI feature availability varies by language and region.
Apple advertises up to 24 hours of battery life across the range, but this is a maximum under Apple's testing conditions, not a promise for every model or workload. The new MacBook Pro also offers three Thunderbolt 5 ports, HDMI, an SDXC card slot, MagSafe, a headphone socket, Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. M5 Pro configurations support up to three external displays; M5 Max configurations support up to four, according to Apple.
Storage can be configured as high as 16TB, with unified memory options up to 128GB. Those figures describe the maximum optional configurations, not the base £2,899 laptop.
Should UK buyers spend £2,899?
Consider the new touchscreen OLED model if you regularly colour-grade footage, retouch photographs, work in illustration or design, or want direct on-screen interaction with creative apps. Its wider colour-space support, redesigned chassis and touchscreen could be meaningful improvements for specialist workflows. You should still check whether your essential apps have fully supported touch controls.
Consider the £1,999 M6 MacBook Pro if you mostly browse, write, study, manage a business or edit less demanding media and do not need touch. The £900 difference could fund useful accessories or additional storage. For professionals who want M5 Pro or M5 Max performance but not OLED, Apple also continues to offer regular-display configurations; PetaPixel's launch analysis highlights that distinction.
Our assessment: this is one of Apple's most significant laptop design changes in years, but the premium only makes sense if the display, touch interaction or lighter build genuinely improves how you work. Don't assume that every app is touch-optimised or that the highest advertised battery figure applies to your chosen configuration.
When can you buy it?
UK pre-orders are open now through Apple's MacBook Pro website. The first announced availability date is 6 November 2026. Check the exact configuration, delivery estimate, accessories and final price before ordering.
Sources and reporting notes
- Apple UK — PROLED XDR MacBook Pro official announcement, 28 October 2026 (specifications, UK pricing and availability).
- Apple UK — 14-inch MacBook Pro with M6, 27 October 2026 (the £1,999 non-touch alternative).
- The Verge — first touchscreen MacBook Pro launch coverage, 28 October 2026 (independent launch reporting).
- PetaPixel — OLED versus regular-display MacBook Pro analysis, 28 October 2026 (buyer context).
Image credit: Apple / Apple Newsroom. Official product press photograph; not AI-generated. Editorial disclosure: This is a source-verified news analysis, not a hands-on product review. No affiliate links are included.