Microsoft will pay you $650 to ditch your MacBook for a Surface
The company will accept Apple computers at Microsoft stores starting Thursday.
If Apple's MacBook updates on Thursday aren't good enough for you, Microsoft has an alternative.
The Windows maker will offer up to $650 for anyone in the US who "trades up" a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air for a Surface Book or a Surface Pro at a Microsoft Store or Microsoft.com starting Thursday, Brian Hall, corporate vice president of marketing for Microsoft devices, said in an interview.
The offer comes as Microsoft unveiled new devices and software at an event in New York. One of its announcements was a battery life boost and graphics bump in its high-end Surface Book i7.
Apple declined to comment Wednesday. It will host an event Thursday where it's expected to introduce redesigned MacBook Pros, the first major updates to the high-end laptops in over four years. The new MacBook Pros will reportedly have an OLED touchscreen in place of function keys, can be unlocked with Touch ID and feature Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports.
One thing the new MacBooks are not expected to have are touchscreens. Microsoft and Windows PC makers popularized the screens in computers and hybrid devices that convert between tablets and laptops. But Apple has resisted putting touchscreens in its computers, saying they don't make sense. Microsoft says lack of touchscreens hurts customers.
"At this point, they're really doing customers a disservice to not to have an option for touch on a MacBook," Hall said Wednesday. "We're going to announce tomorrow a trade-in program so that people who feel disappointed by the Mac not going all the way to touch screen can trade in" their Apple computers for Surface.
Microsoft has offered its Mac trade-in programs before. It didn't say how successful they have been in the past.
Tune into CNET's live blog of Apple's event Thursday here.