Move over, MacBook Air. Although Dell already ripped up Apple’s envelope with the thinner-than-Air Adamo, Sony has set its own sights on the King of Thin, and the resulting Vaio X Series should put both imitator and imitated to shame.
Sony teased the Vaio X at this year’s IFA conference in Berlin, which essentially functions as the European version of CES. With no spec sheet or press release to be found, all we know are the bare essentials from Sony’s press conference: the screen spans 11.1 inches, the whole laptop measures only 0.55 inches thick (compared to 0.76 inches on the Air), and Sony has wrapped it in so much carbon fiber that its total weight comes to only 1.5 pounds. That’s just a smidge heavier than the almost-pocketable and highly flippable 1.4-pound Vaio P.
The Vaio X shown at IFA used the Intel Atom processor typically found in netbooks, but Sony has pledged that its choice of hardware is not yet final. (That should be reassuring news for those who have dealt with the similarly sexy but critically crippled Vaio P.) Sony has also promised a work day of battery life, and the option for a built-in 3G modem. The engineering prototype includes two USB ports, a memory card reader, Ethernet jack, and VGA video output. In the same weight-saving spirit that drove the need for a carbon-fiber shell, the keyboard is milled from aluminum.
Unlike the far-away products previewed at CES, most products shown at IFA come down the pipe in the near future, and Sony has said the Vaio X will go on sale in the week following the Windows 7 launch on October 22. However, many products shown at IFA appear only in European markets, so it could be some time until the Vaio X floats its way over the U.S. As for price, none has yet been announced, but most industry commentators expect Sony to debut it for under $2,000 to compete with the likes of the Air and other ultralights such as the Dell Adamo and Lenovo X301.
Apple has just introduced a redesigned MacBook Pro with a few bells and whistles. The focus this time around is on a thinner and lighter build, and an upgrade to a touch-sensitive OLED screen without any ugly notch. And, in case you were wondering, there is definitely a price premium to pay for these niceties, which also include a glowing Apple logo at the back. What if you wanted to get the best that Apple has to offer? Well, the numbers are finally here.
For a mere $14,549, you can get yourself the fully kitted 16-inch MacBook Pro PROLED XDR with the beefiest laptop chip that Apple has to offer, and the best memory configuration in tow. For nearly $15,000, you treat yourself to the 16-inch version of the laptop with a nano-texture glass layer on the screen to reduce reflections and glare.
Apple has unveiled its first-ever touchscreen MacBook Pro. The company seems a bit confused about the naming, calling it the "MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display," which is tough to remember. If you look past that and review the full spec sheets, you might ask a genuine question: what are the differences between the touchscreen and non-touchscreen versions?
Given that Apple continues to sell both variants together, that's a genuine question. Luckily, you don't have to spend more time lining up the spec sheets side by side and hunting for differences hidden in the fine print. I took that bullet for you. Here's everything that's different between the PROLED XDR Display and the regular MacBook Pro.
MacBook Pro you can touch is genuinely exciting. We've been talking about it for more than a year. All the pent-up anticipation has finally ended. But now there's a new headache: pricing.
The new MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display is available in two screen sizes: 14-inch and 16-inch. Pre-orders open today, October 28, 2026, and deliveries and store stock follow on Friday, November 6, 2026.