Apple has wrapped up October with one of its broadest hardware launches of the year: a new OLED MacBook Pro with a touch display, an OLED iPad mini, an M6 14-inch MacBook Pro and an M6 iMac. Everything was unveiled at a product launch event in Los Angeles, and all of it is coming to the UAE.
The OLED MacBook Pro is the headline product. It is the first Mac to use an OLED display and the first to support touch input, letting users tap, scroll and interact with macOS directly on screen as well as through the keyboard and trackpad. It comes in 14- and 16-inch sizes with a tandem OLED panel that Apple calls the PROLED XDR Display. It is slightly thinner and lighter than the mini-LED MacBook Pro, which stays in the lineup, so buyers can pick the display technology that suits them.
Several new features come with the redesign. The Dynamic Island arrives on the Mac for the first time, bringing the iPhone’s interactive area for alerts and live activities to the laptop. The illuminated Apple logo returns to the lid after about ten years. A new speaker system brings deeper bass and better audio when the lid is closed. Storage options now go up to 16TB, double the previous maximum, and Apple says adding touch has not affected battery life.
The OLED MacBook Pro runs Apple’s M5 Pro and M5 Max chips. In the UAE, the 14-inch model with M5 Pro starts at AED 11,999 and the 16-inch model at AED 14,499. The M5 Max versions start at AED 19,299 for the 14-inch and AED 20,999 for the 16-inch, and education pricing is available on all four models.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro moves to the new M6 chip, which pairs a 12-core CPU with a 12-core GPU and a dual 16-core Neural Engine. Configurations above the base 16GB model get memory bandwidth of up to 170GB/s. Apple rates battery life at up to 24 hours, and the laptop adds Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. It starts at AED 8,499, or AED 8,099 with education savings.
The iMac gets the M6 as well and adds an option for a 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port built into its power adapter, for faster wired connections without extra cables on the desk. It continues in Apple’s existing range of colors. The 10-core model starts at AED 6,499 (AED 6,299 with education savings), and the 12-core version is AED 7,499.
The iPad mini gets its biggest update in years. It now has an 8.5-inch OLED display and the A20 Pro chip, joining the iPad Pro as the second iPad with OLED. It is also Apple’s first iPad with an official IP67 water and dust resistance rating, so it can withstand splashes and brief submersion. A new “acoustic display” design changes how the speakers deliver sound from the sealed body.
The iPad mini also gains a nano-texture display option on select models, an Adaptive True Tone flash, and a landscape front camera, which now features across Apple’s full current iPad range. The 512GB model adds an extra CPU core and a dual Neural Engine. The tablet supports fast charging with a 35W adapter. It comes in Midnight and Starlight with 128GB, 256GB and 512GB storage options. The Wi-Fi model starts at AED 2,849, the Wi-Fi + Cellular version at AED 3,449, and education pricing starts at AED 2,649. The new TechWoven Smart Folio costs AED 339.
Apple announced several other updates at the same time. It released redesigned Mac chargers and a new World Travel Adapter Kit. The Mac Studio with M5 Ultra can now be configured with up to 512GB of RAM. Apple has also increased trade-in values for iPads and Macs, giving existing owners more credit toward an upgrade.
UAE pre-orders opened on October 28, with deliveries and in-store availability from November 6. With touch, OLED and the Dynamic Island now on the Mac, this is the start of a new design direction for the MacBook Pro.
