Apple's Touchable Laptop? Where Is It?

What’s Apple Missing with the MacBookPro?

Okay, I’m late to the touchscreen laptop idea, and I’ll have to admit I was doubtful when I bought my Dell XPS 2-in-1. Well, I’m converted. I love it. The touchscreen is a perfect addition to writing, browsing, and interacting with most online data. And yet, Apple still thinks you’ll get an iPad if you want a touch screen. Or perhaps they think the MacBook Air and MacBookPro are unassailable in their current form. 

We know the MacBook Air is the hottest selling laptop of all-time. This is why all PC manufacturers have rushed to copy and upgrade their machines to look and feel like a Mac. Dell even took the Dell of the screen bezel, causing me to stop someone with a computer and ask, what kind of computer is that? It looked just like a MacBook Air. It was a Dell. A standard and price-competitive laptop that was modified to resemble the aluminum MacBook like.

So, why has Apple continued to ignore this growing market? I think of the Microsoft Surface, the Dell and HP 2-in-1’s, and even the vanilla laptops that have a touchscreen. And I think the first answer is this: Windows is not a very good touch interface. It’s okay. It’s TONS better than it was a few years ago when I played with my friend’s surface. Today, on my XPS 13” I can move and tap and swipe without much hassle. Windows, on the other hand, is a bit of a limitation, in my mind. Having loved the Mac from day one, I was unimpressed when Windows 95 rolled out. I was doing some work for DELL at the time as part of an agency here in Austin, Texas. All of us MacBoys said, “Meh. Windows.” 

Meh. Windows.

Again, part of the problem might be the macOS versus iOS. The iPads and iPhones work so well because the OS was written with tapping and swiping in mind. And while the macOS has evolved greatly over time, its “gestures” on the touchpad are not perfectly or easily translatable to a touch screen interface.

So, Apple is slow to the game for one of several reasons:

• The touchable laptop market is not substantial enough for their entry
• The engineers at Apple have failed to find a compelling reason to add touch
• Apple doesn’t want to enter a market it can’t dominate
• They really do want you to buy both an iPad and a MacBook
• Apple doesn’t care
• Apple still hears the voice of Steve Jobs saying how stupid the idea is

The Touchbar Is a Failure

Whatever Apple’s reasoning, it’s time for them to add a touch screen to a MacBook of some sort. Hey, eliminate the touchbar and add a touchscreen. That would do it. The touchbar has been part of Apple’s recent MacBookPro slump. People (myself included) are still buying 2015 MacBook pros that have no touchbar and still have ample ports for native expansion to HDMI, USB, Thunderbolt, Firewire, ethernet, even audio. The only thing missing is a touch screen.

When will Apple enter the touchable laptop market? Who knows? I’m betting good money they have a whole heap of engineers working on the evolution of the ipad (see the new iMac coming this month!!) and the removal of the touchbar on the MBP for something better. Hint hint, I think it’s a touch screen. We will see at the March Apple announcement if they bring us any closer to a machine that competes with the XPS I’m typing and swiping on now.

John McElhenney

(Disclaimer: John has previously worked for both Apple and Dell. He is currently working for Fluent Social and is not engaged in influencer marketing efforts for any company. These are my own thoughts and experiences.)