Fresh speculations that the upcoming 2016 MacBook Pro and Air models will be arriving with a touch-sensitive keyboard.
The Cupertino company is speculated to be working on 13-inch and 15-inch editions of 2016 MacBook Pro. It is also rumored to be manufacturing a 12-inch MacBook Air notebook for this year. Speculations suggest that these devices may arrive with touch-enabled keyboard that will not feature any keys.
Last year in September, Apple had applied for a patent with the title "force-sensitive input structure for an electronic device." However, it is only now that the patent filing has been made public. Internally, the Cupertino company refers to the innovative input technology as "zero travel."
It means that unlike traditional keyboards, the touch-enabled keyboards will not have physical keys, Mashable reported. Users will have to type on the flat surface of the keyboard. It will be able to sense different levels of finger pressures and provide the desired feedback.
Also, users will be able to easily configure the touch-sensitive keys according their preferences. Users will have the power to separate sections for numbers and special keys. Users can also allot multiple trackpads on the touch-enable keyboard.
The micro-perforations on the keyboard that will be enabled with backlight will allow users to seamlessly type on the keyboard without making mistakes. Since the new keyboard will be having lesser moving parts, it will considerably minimize the component failure risk. Also, dust will not the MacBook device.
The Cupertino firm files several patents every year, but not all of them are seen on devices that are sold commercially. Moreover, it can take many years to release new devices with innovative features that are revealed through filed patents.
MacBook Pro 2016 release date is rumored as June 13. The reason behind it is that the Cupertino company will be holding its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2016 from June 13 to June 17. The new MacBook Pro models are expected to be powered by the latest Intel Skylake chipset, Gizmodo reported
It is expected to come with multiple USB Type-C and Thunderbolt 3 slots. Both the new MacBooks are expected to come with support for Siri voice-assistant app. On the design front, the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro models will resemble the 12-inch MacBook from last year.