Key takeaways
- Apple is running an ad for the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display on Discord. Watch it to the end and you get 250 Orbs, Discord’s virtual coins for profile cosmetics.
- One week after calling the machine “a monumental step forward for the Mac,” Apple’s new white paper says the touchscreen is “merely a bonus.”
- My view: nobody asked Apple for a touchscreen, and I’m 100% sure it won’t survive more than one more generation.
On November 3, AppleInsider reported that Apple is advertising its new MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display on Discord. Users who watch the video to the end get 250 Orbs, Discord’s own currency, which can’t be exchanged for real money and buys only profile cosmetics or Nitro credits. Discord launched these rewarded video ads on September 29: the reward comes after about 15 seconds, and the platform has more than 90 million daily users, with a minimum age of 13.
The same day, Apple published a white paper saying the touchscreen is “merely a bonus” and that the display, which Apple compares to its $2,899 to $3,599 Studio Display XDR, is the real reason for the $400 premium. The laptop starts at $2,899 for the 14-inch and $3,399 for the 16-inch, with the same M5 Pro and M5 Max chips as the non-touch models, and arrives on November 6.
| MacBook Pro M5 Pro | MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price (14-inch) | $2,499 | $2,899 |
| Chip | M5 Pro / M5 Max | M5 Pro / M5 Max (same) |
| Touchscreen | No | Yes, “merely a bonus” per Apple |
| Display | Mini-LED | Tandem OLED, 2,000 nits peak, 10,000,000:1 contrast |
| Advertised on Discord | No | Yes, for 250 Orbs |
In this article: A monumental step forward? For God’s sake · And now it’s “merely a bonus” · Paying kids in virtual coins · The display is great. That’s not the point · The real robbery is the memory · What I would do · FAQ
A monumental step forward? For God’s sake
My God. “A monumental step forward,” said Johny Srouji on October 28. For heaven’s sake, stop it already. Windows laptops have had touchscreens for more than ten years. Stop making fools of us.
What is that supposed to mean? We have to believe your babble? Do you think we only watch you? Do you think we don’t see your competitors? This MacBook is nothing special. To me, it’s junk with a beautiful screen. Nobody begged you for a touch display. That is your imaginary belief, nothing more.
And the whole presentation spins around touch? A new hinge so the screen doesn’t shake when you tap it, Office and Adobe ready for your fingers. And even that isn’t cheap: you put $400 on top for it. Thank God the normal model without touch stayed, so at least we have a choice.
And now it’s “merely a bonus”
One week. That’s how long the “monumental step” lasted. Now Apple publishes a white paper and tells us the touchscreen isn’t the headline, it’s “merely a bonus.”
So which one is it, Apple? Monumental, or a bonus? If it’s a bonus, why does the bonus cost $400? Why do I pay for something even you don’t want to talk about anymore?
I’ll tell you what I think. Apple already sees that people don’t want to pay for touch, so it quickly changed the story to the display. And my prediction: I’m 100% sure touch survives one more generation at most, and then it’s gone. Maybe not even that. Remember the Touch Bar? Exactly.
Paying kids in virtual coins
And now the cherry on top. Apple is selling this machine on Discord, between game stickers and avatar frames.
Who watches these ads? People who want free cosmetics for their profile. They tap, wait the 15 seconds, grab their 250 coins and leave. A big part of Discord is students and teenagers who play games. A 16-year-old gamer will not buy a $2,899 laptop for video editing. And the Mac is still not the computer people buy to play games.
For me, the MacBook Pro is a work machine. It makes money. And you, Apple, pay a teenager in fake coins to look at it? Do you even know who your customer is anymore?
The display is great. That’s not the point
Yes, the display is excellent. 10 million to 1 contrast, 2,000 nits at peak, almost the same as a Studio Display XDR on paper. For a photographer or a colorist, that is a real argument. I said it when it launched, and I say it again.
But you advertise it to the one group that needs it the least. A kid on Discord doesn’t color grade films.
The real robbery is the memory
And the best comment under the 9to5Mac article said exactly what I think: the $400 for the screen is not even the main problem. The problem is memory and storage. $600 more to go from 24GB to 48GB, almost a thousand for 64GB.
That is where Apple makes its money, with margins of about 85% on storage. And in the Discord ad? Not a word. There you get 250 coins and a nice video. Bravo.
What I would do
If you need a MacBook Pro for work, buy the M6 model for $1,999 or the M5 Pro without touch. Put the saved $400 into memory, because that is what you will feel every single day.
And Apple, stop selling us touch as a revolution, and stop paying kids in virtual coins to watch it. In my opinion, that money ends up on our bill anyway.
Also on Evolt News: $400 for a touch · MacBook Pro M6 for $1,999 · Ternus and the word “product”
Featured image: Alexander Shatov / Unsplash.
This article is opinion.
MacBook Pro on Discord: FAQ
Is Apple advertising the MacBook Pro on Discord?
Yes. AppleInsider reported on November 3, 2026, that Apple runs an ad for the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display on Discord. Users who watch it to the end receive 250 Orbs.
What are Discord Orbs?
Orbs are Discord’s virtual currency, earned by completing sponsored Quests such as watching video ads. They can be spent on profile cosmetics and Nitro credits and cannot be exchanged for real money.
What did Apple say about the touchscreen in its white paper?
Apple argued that the touchscreen is not the headline feature of the MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display, merely a bonus, and that the display quality, close to its Studio Display XDR, justifies the $400 premium.
How much does the touchscreen MacBook Pro cost?
It starts at $2,899 for the 14-inch and $3,399 for the 16-inch, $400 more than the non-touch M5 Pro models. It arrives on November 6, 2026.
Does the PROLED MacBook Pro have a newer chip?
No. It uses the same M5 Pro and M5 Max chips as the non-touch MacBook Pro. The cheaper 14-inch MacBook Pro has the newer M6 chip.
Sources: Apple, AppleInsider, 9to5Mac, Discord, Engadget.
Our Take
One week after calling it “a monumental step forward,” Apple now calls the touchscreen on its $2,899 MacBook Pro “merely a bonus,” and pays Discord users in virtual coins to watch the ad. Windows laptops have had touch for more than ten years, and nobody asked Apple for it.
The smart buy is the M6 model or the non-touch version, with the saved $400 spent on memory. And I’m sure touch on the Mac won’t last long.
