Preorder customers are reporting that Apple is packaging up for the first wave of shipments of the 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, in every configuration, and are gearing up for a second wave as well. Most users who saw credit card charges made on Monday are seeing a status update of "preparing for shipment".

The earliest shipments seem limited to those who ordered machines on the day of, or early the day after, the Oct. 27 "Hello Again" press event. Delivery dates for the first batch of shipments reported to us fall between Nov. 11 and Nov. 17.

Some of the first wave of purchasers are reporting a date range ending as late as Nov. 25, with the second batch looking at delivery from December 5 to 15. Some users with custom configurations focused around the 15-inch MacBook Pro Touch Pad with Radeon Pro 460 GPU have yet to receive an estimated ship date beyond "December" and in some cases "early January."

AppleInsider sources within the retail chain at Apple and elsewhere tell us that they aren't expecting "boosted" configurations of the MacBook Pro 13- and 15-inch with Touch Bar (including higher-end GPUs) in store at launch. 

Most Apple stores have demonstration units of the new MacBook Pro with Touch Bar now, and are expecting a few "baseline" models for customers to purchase on or around Nov. 15, with other retail channels like Best Buy expecting "limited quantities" around Nov. 17.

"Refunds" reported by customers, aren't cancellations

Some users are reporting "refunds" by Apple —but this is not actually the case. As expected, and confirmed by AppleInsider an apparent "refund" is actually an available funds hold expiring prior to charge. 

Apple informed us that customers with order numbers will still see the charge finalize, or a new hold placed "within a few days."

The 2016 MacBook Pro family, announced at Apple's "Hello Again" event, is a major redesign of Apple's flagship notebook, and comes in screen sizes of 13 and 15 inches, with core models starting at $1,799. AppleInsider was at the event, and was able to spend some time with all the latest hardware.

Source: appleinsider