MacBook Pro 16": a leak announces the redesign of the Touch Bar

Dominik Bärlocher

31.10.2019

Translation: machine translated

The next big MacBook Pro will see a redesign of the Touch Bar. This is confirmed by an image in a release version of the macOS operating system.

Bad news for those hoping for the Touch Bar to disappear. The new MacBook Pro, rumoured to have a 16-inch screen diagonal, will still have a Touch Bar where the F-keys should be, portal 9to5Mac has revealed.

New Touch Bar design

Apple hasn't been idle with its minimal Touch Bar redesign. The power button, which also functions as a fingerprint reader, is now detached from the rest of the bar. This could improve the haptics when unlocking the device.

9to5Mac found the image in the release version of the macOS 10.15.1 operating system, which in the meantime has been removed by patch and Apple has thus plugged its leak. As the image comes from the Apple operating system itself, the leak is considered confirmed information.

Touch Bar controversial

The Touch Bar idea sounds like a good thing: instead of F-keys, a MacBook has a touchscreen at the top of the keyboard. Depending on the program you're working in, the function of the virtual buttons on the Touch Bar changes. In Safari, Apple's web browser, you have navigation keys like 'Next' and 'Previous'. It works quite well, even if the Touch Bar is more of a gadget. Adobes Photoshop relies on the responsibility of the user, as they can freely configure the Touch Bar, which tends to cause more problems. Especially as most scripts can be selected via the ⌘+F key.

This is why many Mac users want the F-keys back. The benefit of the Touch Bar would be too little.

Dominik Bärlocher

Senior Editor

dominik.baerlocher@digitecgalaxus.ch

Journalist. Author. Hacker. A storyteller searching for boundaries, secrets and taboos – putting the world to paper. Not because I can but because I can’t not.

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