On Tuesday, we’ve got good news for those excited about the first MacBook Pro with an OLED display: A new report says the laptop will launch this fall. Some previous leaks suggested that the device might not reach customers until next year.
In addition to the OLED screen – which should make the display look noticeably better – the MacBook Pro 2026 is said to have a significant redesign, including a touchscreen.
OLED MacBook release date: This fall
Enough leaks and analyst reports show that an OLED MacBook is in the works that this device seems like a safe bet. News of the development goes all the way back to 2024 – and it’s finally happening.
“Samsung Display will make the first MacBook OLED panel, which Apple will launch in the fourth quarter of this year,” The Elec reported on Tuesday according to machine translation.
Traditional LCDs depend on backlighting. With OLED displays (short for organic light-emitting diode), each pixel lights up by itself. The result is a clear, even image with strong contrast. This type of screen looks so good that Apple already uses it for the iPhone, Apple Watch and iPad Pro. Next is the line on the MacBook.
Some previous reports also pointed to a better-looking Mac laptop launching in 2026, but some warned that the product might not arrive until 2027. Especially considering that Apple is holding off the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro/M5 Max chips until sometime this winter or spring.
And timing aside, there’s more good news: The OLED MacBook Pro will be available in both 14-inch and 16-inch versions.
Maybe no price increase?
The high cost of manufacturing OLED screens has kept them out of MacBooks so far. However, the panels that Apple will use in its upcoming laptop are said to come from Samsung Display, the first company capable of producing large OLED panels at more reasonable prices in the eighth-generation OLED manufacturing process.
When the first OLED iPad Pro debuted in 2024, Apple raised the price. It has been speculated that the same will be true for the OLED MacBook Pro. But if Samsung can keep production costs down, maybe not.
Elec’The source of this information appears to be within Samsung, not Apple.
More on the OLED MacBook Pro redesign
The OLED screen isn’t the only major change to expect. It will be the first notebook with an M6 processor, which will bring a significant leap in performance.
Additionally, multiple analysts predict that the 2026 MacBook Pro will be the first implementation of a touchscreen in a MacBook, although Apple will (of course) retain the traditional trackpad and keyboard for most interactions.
Leaks also suggest that this first OLED MacBook Pro will have a thinner, lighter chassis and a redesigned display area that could ditch the laptop’s unsightly notch in favor of a punch-hole camera.
M5 MacBook Pro vs. M6 MacBook Pro with OLED
Don’t be fooled by the Apple MacBook design plans. In the coming weeks, Apple is expected to introduce an improved MacBook Pro powered by M5 Pro/M5 Max chips. This laptop will reportedly use the same chassis as the previous models.
We will have to wait until autumn for the M6 MacBook Pro with OLED display and redesigned design.