There’s good news Tuesday for those excited about the first MacBook Pro with an OLED display: A new report pegs the laptop’s launch for this fall. Some previous leaks indicated the device might not reach customers until next year.
Beyond the OLED screen — which should make the display noticeably better-looking — the 2026 MacBook Pro is rumored to feature a significant redesign, including a touchscreen.
OLED MacBook release date: This fall
Enough leaks and analysts’ reports point to an OLED MacBook in the works that the device seems like a safe bet. Reports of development go all the way back to 2024 — and it’s finally happening.
“Samsung Display will make the first OLED MacBook panel that Apple will launch in the fourth quarter of this year,” The Elec reported Tuesday, according to a machine translation.
Traditional LCDs depend on backlights. With OLED (short for organic light-emitting diode) displays, each pixel glows on its own. The result is a bright, even image with strong contrast. This type of screen looks so good, Apple already uses it for iPhone, Apple Watch and iPad Pro. Next, it’s MacBook’s turn.
Some previous reports also pointed to a 2026 launch for the better-looking Mac notebook, but some warned that the product might not arrive until 2027. Especially considering Apple is holding the MacBook Pro with M5 Pro/M5 Max chips until sometime this winter or spring.
And there’s more good news beyond timing: There’ll be both 14-inch and 16-inch versions of the OLED MacBook Pro.
Maybe no price increase?
The high cost of producing OLED screens has kept them out of MacBooks so far. However, the panels Apple will use in its upcoming laptop reportedly will come from Samsung Display, the first company capable of making large OLED panels for more reasonable prices in an eighth-generation OLED production process.
When the first OLED iPad Pro debuted in 2024, Apple jacked up the price. There’s been speculation that the same would be true of the OLED MacBook Pro. But if Samsung can keep production costs down, perhaps not.
The Elec’s source for this information seems to be inside Samsung, not Apple.
More about the OLED MacBook Pro redesign
An OLED screen isn’t the only major change to expect. This will be the first laptop with an M6 processor, bringing a sizable jump in performance.
Plus, multiple analysts predict the 2026 MacBook Pro will be the first touchscreen implementation in a MacBook, though Apple will (of course) retain the traditional trackpad and keyboard for most interactions.
Leaks also suggest this first OLED MacBook Pro will feature a thinner, lighter chassis and a redesigned display area that could eliminate the laptop’s unsightly notch in favor of a hole-punch camera.
M5 MacBook Pro vs. M6 MacBook Pro with OLED
Don’t get confused about Apple’s MacBook scheduling plans. In the next few weeks, Apple is expected to introduce an upgraded MacBook Pro powered by M5 Pro/M5 Max chips. This laptop reportedly will use the same chassis as previous models.
We’ll be waiting until fall for the M6 MacBook Pro with an OLED display and a revamped design.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
