Like the Apple silicon in modern MacBook Pros, RTX Spark is an Arm-based processor with a powerful integrated GPU and plenty of unified memory. And the Yoga is the most fun RTX Spark laptop yet because it’s a 16-inch 2-in-1 convertible with stylus. Its Nvidia-equipped compatriots also have touchscreens, like most Windows laptops, but they’re conventional clamshell designs.
The Lenovo Yoga does all your typical 2-in-1 tasks: it can be used as a clamshell laptop, and it can fold down its hinge completely for tent and tablet modes. As a tablet, you can use it in landscape or portrait orientation, and moving the keyboard out of the way is ideal for watching movies, playing games with a controller, or integrating your laptop into a multi-monitor desktop setup with keyboard and mouse.
The Yoga 9n’s included stylus works for taking notes and drawing on its excellent OLED display, but you can also use it on the haptic trackpad for a Wacom-like experience, without blocking the screen with your hand. And the stylus is magnetic, allowing it to attach to the Yoga’s lid, either on its own or in its case. I particularly enjoy using the Yoga stylus for photo editing in Lightroom Classic or Photoshop. I haven’t used a stylus for this kind of work in a long time, since I ditched my old Wacom, but having one that works on either the screen or trackpad is incredibly handy
I expect a touchscreen MacBook Pro to support Apple Pencil. And like the Lenovo, this would go a long way toward getting me back to using a stylus for touch-ups. But hopefully, like the Lenovo, it also works on the trackpad – the more options, the better. And if a touchscreen MacBook supports the Apple Pencil (which it should), I also hope it will attach to the laptop, both for convenience and for wireless charging, like on the iPad Pro. Lenovo’s stylus relies on USB-C charging, which is nice, but not as convenient as always having it charged and ready to go when connected to your laptop.
I don’t expect Apple to make a standard convertible laptop after all this time. Simply joining the Windows makers in creating a 2-in-1 or replacing the MacBook Pro’s Mini LED with a touchscreen OLED display and calling it quits doesn’t seem very Apple. I’m hoping for something special, like Apple’s version of the Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio — a clever idea that moved the touchscreen forward instead of backwards — or something entirely new. And there are indications in macOS 27 that Apple is updating to Golden Gate to make touch functions more natural than just poking and prodding things designed for a mouse cursor. As fun as I find Windows laptops and 2-in-1 Chromebooks, using these desktop operating systems with a finger or stylus can get clunky.
I have high hopes that Apple will wow us, because this touchscreen MacBook Pro will certainly be expensive. And Apple’s recent design decisions aren’t flawless. The HomeView’s lack of apps is confusing. The iPhone Duo is a bit messy. Today’s MacBooks are so great that it’s easy to forget the butterfly keyboard fiasco not long ago. After all this time waiting to add a touchscreen to the MacBook, Apple must be worth it he.
Photography by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge
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