Apple "Pro and Tell" launch event LIVE: All the news on the new MacBook Pro with OLED and touch, and more

Will Apple's "Pro and tell" event be streamed live?

Apple's senior vice president of marketing, Greg Joswiak, posted a teaser last week for a new launch event this Wednesday. However, there's no indication so far that we'll be able to watch it live.

Journalists have been invited to an in-person presentation in LA at 10am PT that day (5pm GMT), but there are no live link details as yet. It could be that it just appears online at that time as a video, without a big fanfare. We'll update you as and when we find out more.

What do we expect today?

Of all the products that have been rumoured, I think the OLED iPad mini is the most likely to be announced today. Apple generally sends out its press releases around 9am ET – so 1pm GMT considering the clocks have just gone back in the UK. We'll find out for sure around that time, therefore.

An OLED iPad mini (the iPad mini 8, basically) will also get a processor boost to the A20 Pro, it's claimed. That's the same chip in the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo. That'll give it the ability to run Siri AI locally and many of the more advanced Apple Intelligence features.

The OLED display could also get a bump to 120Hz, but that's purely speculation for now.

Return of the (i)Mac

Apple's first-ever touchscreen MacBook aside, the most exciting announcement this week for me could be the return of the iMac. We didn't get one last year, with the last model released in 2024 sporting the M4 chip, so an upgrade will be very welcome.

Likely to retain the 24-inch display, the new model is said to be coming with M6 Apple silicon in its guts. That means it'll run as well as the latest Mac mini model, and if you've seen any of the gaming tests that have appeared online, you'll know that's quite a big deal.

According to renowned YouTuber ETA Prime, even the 16GB Mac mini M6 is capable of running Mac and Windows games at 1440p with high settings. He's had it run many Steam games through emulation that aren't even available on Mac.

Don't call it a comeback

While we still await news on Apple's first announcement of the week, there's something else that's popped up that'll be relevant to any new products – the revival of iTunes.

The Financial Times has reported that the iTunes Store is seeing something of a resurgence. As well as a rise in physical sales, music artists are seeing digital purchases increase after releasing new albums as iTunes exclusives.

Taylor Swift, for example, saw her Life of a Showgirl album do better in sales than it did on streaming services, it's claimed.

New iPad mini OLED arrives!

As we suggested earlier, Apple has announced a new iPad mini with an OLED display.

It runs on the A20 Pro chip, which we've also reported before, and even gets a Center Stage front camera bump up to 12-megapixels. The display is larger than on the iPad mini 7 – it's now 8.5-inches – and the tablet is thinner and lighter than ever before.

You'll be able to pre-order one in either midnight or starlight colours from Wednesday 28 October for 6 November shipping. It's priced from $699 / £699 for the 128GB Wi-Fi only model. There are also 256GB and 512GB configurations. And the Wi-Fi + Cellular version starts at $849 / £849.

Nano-texture display on iPad mini for the first time

The new iPad mini's headline features are great, but as an iPad Pro owner, I'm also pleased to see that Apple is offering the nano-texture glass option on the 256GB and 512GB models.

This makes it much more comfortable to use as an e-reader, as well as less smudgy – it reduces fingerprints dramatically. You will have to pay a £100 / $100 surcharge for the tech, which makes the smaller tablet considerably more expensive than it has ever been, but once you go nano you won't go back.

iPad mini OLED: all the main upgrades

As a quick refresher, the main upgrades that the new iPad mini brings are as follows:

• A20 Pro chipset – the same processor used in the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo.
• 8.5-inch OLED Super Retina XDR display with nano-texture glass option.
• 24% smaller bezels around the screen.
• Thinner and lighter, at 5.4mm thick and 255g (Wi-Fi only model).
• 12-megapixel Center Stage front camera on horizontal edge.
• IP67 rated for water and dust resistance.
• Acoustic Display for better sound performance.
• N1 chip for wireless connectivity (Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth and Thread).
• C2 chip for cellular models.
• Price is up by £100 / $100 over last model, plus an extra £100 / $100 if you want the nano-texture glass.

You can find out more on Apple's online store, including all the pricing details – it starts at £699 / $699. Pre-orders open this Wednesday with shipping from 6 November 2026.

What's next for "Pro and tell" week?

So now we've had the iPad mini OLED announcement, which you can read more about by scrolling down this page, what's next?

Well, as I tipped, Apple seems to be repeating the same strategy it used on the build-up to the MacBook Neo launch earlier this year. Then, as it has shown today, it sent out press releases of at least one new product on each day prior to the main announcement. That means we should expect something else tomorrow.

I personally think it'll either be the M6 iMac or both the iMac and an M6 MacBook Pro. Each of them have been rumoured in recent times, and it's really whether Apple will leave the Pro to launch alongside the "MacBook Ultra" on Wednesday or not.

Whichever is true, you shouldn't expect to see a MacBook running on an M6 Pro or M6 Max chip – it's thought that Apple is skipping its upgraded silicon this year in favour of an M7 Pro and M7 Max next.

As for the iMac, I'd love to see the return of a 27-inch model, but that's highly doubtful. We'll find out around 9am ET / 1pm GMT tomorrow, Tuesday 27 October.

Apple event – day two

As we expected, Apple kicked off several days of announcements with the launch of the long-awaited 8th gen iPad mini – AKA, the iPad mini OLED. But there's still plenty to come.

We should also see an M6 iMac, M6 MacBook Pro and the much-rumoured OLED-toting, touchscreen MacBook, currently dubbed MacBook Ultra.

At least one of the M6 devices will be announced today, I think, possibly both. They'll come around the same time the iPad mini release arrived yesterday – 9am ET, 1pm GMT. We'll make sure you bring you all the news as it happens.

Sometimes when we touch, the honesty's too much...

As Apple plans to introduce its first touchscreen Mac, it's worth remembering what Steve Jobs said about touchscreens on laptops during a launch event 16 years ago:

"We thought about this years ago. We've done tonnes of user testing on this and it turns out it doesn't work! Touch surfaces don't want to be vertical... after a short time you start to fatigue, and after an extended period of time, your arm wants to fall off.

"It doesn't work. It's ergonomically terrible!"

So what's changed? Well, the technology has for starters. The responsiveness of the display, the software experience, the weight of the laptop – these have all vastly improved since 2010. The use of a touchscreen has changed too – it's not a keyboard or touchpad replacement, it's an additional control method for some use cases. So let's see if the MacBook Ultra can prove Steve wrong.

iOS 27.2 brings pencil functionality

Today saw the update to iOS 27.2, which brought with it Apple Pencil compatibility for the iPhone Duo. This brings an interesting comparison with the new iPad mini as both devices now offer a small tablet-like screen for use with Apple Pencil.

My guess is that if we do see a touchscreen MacBook Pro, this will also support Apple Pencil use, giving the stylus even greater flexibility.

Is it the iMac or the MacBook coming today?

We're still expecting an announcement this afternoon from Apple, ahead of tomorrow's Pro and Tell event, and I initially thought it would be the iMac. However, MacRumors reminds us that today is exactly 10 years since the Touch Bar was introduced to the MacBook Pro. It's rare that timings like this are a coincidence with Apple, so maybe there's something more touch-based coming today.

I doubt the iMac will feature a touch display, so maybe we will hear about a MacBook product today. There is expected to be both a standard M6 MacBook Pro and the new touchscreen model coming after all.

Bigger screen iMacs?

The current iMac features a 24-inch display, which now feels a little small for some users. In the past, Apple had offered a larger 27-inch iMac. Now that space is filled by the 27-inch Studio Display combined with a Mac mini.

I'd love to see a larger iMac return to the offerings, but I think at the moment that's unlikely.

News expected shortly

Yesterday's iPad mini press release was sent just after 1pm UK time (7am PST), so if there's an announcement today it could be here in a matter of minutes...

iMac M6 launches

The new iMac is here. As expected, Apple has announced an iMac with a new M6 chip inside. With a 24-inch 4.5K Retina display, it comes in seven colours and features up to four Thunderbolt 4 ports.

Read our full story here

New 14-inch MacBook Pro M6

And that's not all. Apple has also revealed a new M6 version of the 14-inch MacBook Pro. Aside from the new chip, it looks like not much else has changed. It still features a Liquid Retina XDR display with 12MP Centre Stage camera. Though it has been upgraded to Bluetooth 6 and WiFi 7.

Read the full story here

Creator Studio gets an update too

And as if those two device weren't enough, Apple has also updated its Creator Studio. The update includes video assets, plug-ins, transitions, templates and more for your projects. There's also upgrades to Pixelmator Pro's image editing and new beat making tools in Logic Pro.

What's next?

So far, all the launches have been as expected. We've seen the iPad mini OLED, the iMac M6 and the MacBook Pro M6 – though we didn't expect that one today. There's only one thing left.

It leaves tomorrow open for the main event, which is highly anticipated to be a touchscreen MacBook Pro. The chances are this will also feature the M6 chip, and it could be available in both 14-inch and 16-inch sizes.

I'm hoping there are other surprises in the spec, because as good as a touchscreen Mac sounds, it might not be the game changer that it would have been a few years back.

Apple Pencil Pro compatibility here is a must for pro creators, and the display itself needs to at least match the Ultra Retina XDR display of the iPad Pro, with a tandem OLED and ProMotion 120Hz adaptive refresh rates.

Apple event – day three

We've seen three new Apple products in the last two days, but arguably the biggest is yet to come. Later today we'll be treated to a MacBook launch like no other – if the last six months or so of rumours turn out to be true.

It's claimed that we'll see new, higher-end MacBook Pro models in 14- and 16-inch sizes with touchscreen OLED displays and a new case design. Also known on the 'net as the MacBook Ultra, the new variant will also come with a Dynamic Island, it's claimed – like the one on the iPhone 18 Pro.

We shall see. We'll also bring you all the additional details that emerge today as we find out more.

How much will the MacBook Pro OLED (Ultra) cost?

Apple announced its latest 14-inch MacBook Pro yesterday with a starting price of £1,999 / $1,999 but as you'd expect, its first touchscreen model will cost considerably more.

That's the opinion of Bloomberg's resident Apple expert Mark Gurman. He claims the OLED-toting model could start at £2,899 / $2,899 – and that's for the 14-inch version, too. However, it will run on the M5 Pro chip, which continues to be considerably more powerful than the M6 in the new standard MacBook Pro.

The new 16-inch touchscreen MacBook will start at £3,399 / $3,399, he also suggests. To be fair, both prices are a £400 / $400 premium over the current M5 Pro equivalents without the new display or design.

Will we get a new MacBook Neo today?

Considering it only launched in March this year, we do not expect Apple to upgrade its MacBook Neo until spring next year – and that's been "confirmed" by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

He suggests a new version will be available in the "first half of 2027", which matches the timing of this year's release. He also claims a redesigned "low-end" MacBook Pro will be made available around the same time, with further MacBook Pro releases featuring M7, M7 Pro and M7 Max chips coming later.

iPhone Duo not the only one with a new hinge

One of the new hardware features touted for the touchscreen MacBook is a new hinge. That makes sense considering regular MacBook models don't usually have to put up with being pressed while open.

It's claimed that the new hinge design will make the new laptop more stable when open, so it doesn't rock or wobble when the screen is touched. This coupled with thinner bezels, an OLED display, presumably nano-texture glass for fewer obvious fingerprints, and a new lighter design overall, could make this new MacBook worth considering (even at the prices below).

What time will the new MacBook be unveiled?

Unlike the iPad mini, iMac and M6 MacBook Pro over the last couple of days, the new MacBook Pro / Ultra with an OLED display is unlikely to be announced by a simple press release today – after all, journalists have been invited to an in-person event in Los Angeles.

So, with that taken into consideration, we're expecting the full announcement to be made around 10am PT / 5pm GMT today. That's the usual timing for a major Apple event, anyway.

Future Islands

One of the other big changes coming with the expected touchscreen MacBook Pro / Ultra is a swap from a notch to a Dynamic Island. This will allow the Center Stage camera to morph and change depending on notifications and apps – much like the Face ID camera does on iPhone Pro models.

One code miner has reportedly found references to the new Dynamic Island in MacOS 27. PDFU has even posted images of the new "MenuBarAgent" on X.

A teaser from Ternus

As expected, today's announcement will be a bit different to the ones over the last couple of days. Apple CEO John Ternus has just posted a teaser video on X suggesting that the touchscreen MacBook Pro / Ultra will be unveiled later – at 10am PT / 5pm GMT.

Will the new MacBook leave you a-glow?

Based on the teaser clip posted by John Ternus a little while ago, the internet has been awash with speculation that the glowing Apple logo is returning.

Apple Files, for example, posted the image above on X saying, "The glowing Apple logo is coming back??" 9to5Mac posted something similar.

The last MacBook Pro to feature a glowing logo on the lid was released in 2015, while technically the last to sport one was the MacBook Air in 2017. Could Apple be about to bring it back almost a decade later?

Apple "Pro and tell" livestream – is the event streaming online?

Although Apple is hosting an in-person showcase for journalists in the States, it is not expected to stream its new MacBook launch online. You will, most likely, be able to watch a pre-recorded video promotion of the new device instead.

We're also expecting full details to arrive in our in-boxes as the LA event happens, so will bring you the news as soon as we can.

The clock's ticking

If our estimations are right, Apple will announce its most exciting product of the week in less than an hour. The touchscreen MacBook Pro / Ultra will arrive in 14- and 16-inch variants shortly.

We'll be bringing you all the news as it happens.

Here we go...

Apple is about to announce its latest product – its first ever MacBook with a touchscreen, something Steve Jobs said was "ergonomically terrible".

Stay tuned...

It's official – the all-new MacBook Pro

Although we're yet to see the press release and official pictures, reports coming from LA reveal that a new MacBook Pro has been unveiled. And as expected, it comes with a touchscreen display.

The screen is ProLED XDR – which is a Tandem OLED with a brightness of 2,000 nits and a 120Hz refresh rate. It's touch-enabled, of course. The screen also reduces the weight of the new laptop, making it around 1.3kg.

The new MacBook Pro also runs on the M5 Pro or M5 Max chipset.

We'll bring you more shortly.

And here it is...

We're still waiting on official images, but Apple CEO John Ternus has just posted a video of the new MacBook Pro on his X feed...

Behold, the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR display and touch

The full details are in!

Here's the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display and Touch, to give it its rather lengthy name. Running on the M5 Pro or M5 Max chip, depending on the version you choose, it is essentially a MacBook Pro but with a Tandem OLED display.

This means it has the most accurate colour presentation in a MacBook screen to date, while also able to reach the deepest black levels. There's 2,000 nits of peak HDR and SDR brightness, plus a claimed contrast ratio of 10 million to one.

Of course, the headline feature is that it's the first ever Mac with a touchscreen, and there's the Dynamic Island rather than a notch for the Center Stage camera.

Available in both 14- and 16-inches, the new models weigh less than equivalent standard MacBook Pros, at 1.3kg and 1.8kg respectively. They are also thinner and thanks to slimmer bezels, the actually screen real estate is 14.2-inches and 16.3-inches.

Pricing starts at $2,899 / £2,899 for the 14-inch variant, $3,399 / £3,399 for the 16-incher. Both are available to pre-order today with shipping to start on 6 November.