Modbook, known for offering heavily modified pen-based Mac tablets, today introduced the Modbook Pro X, which converts Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar into a tablet.
The Modbook Pro X, which continues to run macOS High Sierra, takes the internal components of a standard MacBook Pro and melds them into a tablet-style aluminum airframe with a built-in flip-out presentation stand and an optional Keyboard Stand that converts it to laptop mode. An included Modbook MonoPro Mount, which doubles as a tripod screw mount, allows the Modbook Pro X to be positioned in portrait mode or in multiple landscape configurations.
In addition to moving the MacBook Pro components into a tablet enclosure, the Modbook Pro X adds pen support to the device’s Retina display. Rotate, tilt, and pressure features are enabled, and the MacBook Pro Touch Bar is available directly under the pen-compatible display. The Touch Bar on the Modbook Pro X displays the same dynamic app controls as it does on the MacBook Pro, but it’s in easier reach in the tablet form factor.
The Touch Bar is accompanied by a new multi-function Touchpad Remote that can be held in the hand to enable simultaneous secondary touch and gesture input alongside the pen. When used in the optional laptop mode with the Keyboard Stand, the Touchpad Remote nestles into the stand and serves as a multi-touch trackpad.
The base system for the Modbook Pro X is configurable with an up to 3.1GHz quad-core Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM, Intel Graphics 630, and up to a Radeon Pro 560 with 4GB memory. It supports three external Thunderbolt 3 ports and charges with the standard 87W power adapter. Up to three 4K displays or two 5K displays are supported.
The internal storage array of the Modbook Pro X uses up to 2TB of non-upgradeable onboard flash memory along with two additional upgradeable flash memory modules. A custom chipset allows the two modules to be configured as separate drives, one Mirrored Safe-Storage drive or a Combined Double Speed Drive. Two 2TB SSDs are supported in the extra flash modules for a total maximum of 6TB of SSD storage space – that’s triple the capacity of a standard MacBook Pro.
“The new Modbook Pro X with Touch Bar is the culmination of the company’s successful Kickstarter campaign, developed and designed in close cooperation with members of the creative Mac community that originally backed the project, and I believe it is now the most capable tablet ever created for the creative industries,” said Andreas Haas, Modbook Inc.’s Chief Executive Officer and Lead Engineer.
Modbook plans to charge $4,898 for the Modbook Pro X, but customers who already own a compatible 15-inch Retina MacBook Pro will be able to order a We-Mod-Yours transformation service for $2,499.
Before launching the Modbook Pro X, Modbook is gathering investments through WeFunder. Following the close of the campaign, Modbook plans to begin accepting orders before shipping the Modbook Pro X in the United States in late winter.
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