Here’s the secret behind the return of the illuminated Apple logo on the back of the new touchscreen MacBook Pro
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For Apple fans, the MacBook Pro PROLED XDR tandem OLED touchscreen may be the gift that keeps on giving. Obviously, new integrated digitizing technology made the touch screen possible, but ultra-thin screen technology can also be credited with allowing the return of a beloved MacBook feature.
The touchscreen MacBook Pro is the first MacBook in nearly a decade to feature an illuminated Apple logo on the back. I’ve seen it in person and it somehow looks like polished metal when closed and then shiny white when open.
Apple bringing back the illuminated logo is directly due to the PROLED XDR display. Every pixel on an OLED panel is emissive, meaning there is no need for backlighting. Even after Apple made the laptop’s lid thinner, it still had some room left, and it turns out there was enough room to give the Apple logo its own backlight.
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As unlikely as it may seem, there is now a dedicated light for the logo, but not for the rest of the screen. And it still doesn’t take up extra space (or consume measurable energy).
Do it for the fans.
Why did Apple do this? Well, Apple doesn’t tell us, but it’s clearly a nod to fans.
CEO John Ternus tried to tell us that the glowing logo would return on its little X that showed a light shining on the logo, which was on a flat surface. I just thought it was another way to highlight the Apple brand and the great things to come. Of course, I was never that hooked on the old illuminated logo.
In fact, my strongest memory of the Apple logo on the back of MacBooks is a conversation I had with Ternus when he was still Apple’s hardware lead, during which he explained how Apple milled an Apple logo out of ultra-thin, shiny stainless steel for the MacBook 12 (the rest of the chassis was brushed aluminum). That was a big deal back then, even if it didn’t turn on
When Ternus revealed that the shiny logo would be returning to the new MacBook Pro during the launch presentation (“the logo is back”), the crowd basically lost their minds. It’s a big problem.
The illuminated logo also serves another purpose: to instantly telegraph that you’re using a special MacBook Pro, the first with a touchscreen.
However, what Apple doesn’t share (and deserves further investigation) is how it managed to make the shiny logo look like polished metal when the laptop is closed. It’s an engineering secret that I suspect Apple executives and engineers will take to their graves, even after the inevitable dismantling.
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