Apple announces product launch event for Oct. 28. Analysts expect touchscreen laptop

Apple announced a product launch event on Oct. 28, sending invitations on Monday to media and analysts for an "Apple Experience in Los Angeles."

The email says "Pro and tell," suggesting the launch will focus on high-end "Pro" devices with powerful homegrown chips.

Ben Reitzes, an analyst at Melius Research, wrote in a note on Monday that he expects new Macs to be introduced, "including a touchscreen notebook," this fall. He said that for CEO John Ternus, who succeeded Tim Cook last month, the launch cadence marks a "meaningful shift" from what has been two events a year.

It will be Apple's third launch in Ternus' brief tenure, following an event at company headquarters for new iPhones, including the foldable Duo, and a gathering in New York centered around smart home hubs and a new speaker with a screen called HomeView.

Apple updated its Mac Mini and Mac Studio desktops with new chips in August, and refreshed its MacBook Pro in the spring, along with a new low-cost MacBook Neo. But Apple's iMac desktop hasn't been updated since October 2024.

In the most recent quarter, Apple's Mac sales accounted for about 10% of overall revenue, as the company remains heavily reliant on iPhones.

Still, Macs have become one of the strongest parts of Apple's artificial intelligence story, thanks to its chips that can access more memory at higher speeds than other consumer processors. Apple shares are up 26% so far this year, outperforming the S&P 500.

Last week, Apple and Meta teamed up to bring a large open-weight model, developed by Meta, to multiple high-end Mac Studios.

Apple has historically been dismissive of touchscreen laptops, with software chief Craig Federighi explaining in 2018 that the ergonomics would fatigue users.

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