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A new report tells us that Apple MacBook Pro models with OLED screens have been delayed until 2027 — though the iPad Pro is still on target to get these fancy displays next year.
The report comes from Korean tech site The Elec (via 9 to 5 Mac), which is the source of many hardware rumours, and cites Omdia, a market research firm, which made these revelations at a recent conference .
As mentioned, the theory is that the first OLED MacBook isn’t due for another four years – a long wait indeed – although we should sprinkle this with plenty of spice, and remember that this is just a prediction anyway. Is.
Previously, Omdia noted that OLED-toting MacBook Pro models were expected to be introduced in 2026, but it appears to have been pushed back another year.
The better news from this crystal ball observing session is that Apple is set to bring OLED to both the 11-inch and 12.9-inch models of the iPad Pro next year.
We’re told that mass production of those iPads will begin in the first quarter of 2024.
Analysis: However, the MacBook Air still exists… right?
This is obviously disappointing news for those hoping to get OLED on their MacBook Pro in the future, but we need a little break here before we get swept up in pessimism.
Such long-range predictions require extra care. The farther out the forecast, the more skeptical we should be for obvious reasons, as there are undoubtedly a lot of factors and moving parts involved in the design decisions of a MacBook that are more than a generation away.
That said, this is roughly in line with what we’ve heard about the MacBook Pro in recent times — namely that it won’t get OLED until 2026. This rumor comes from display industry analyst Ross Young, a respected source for all things Apple. And it’s entirely possible that further delays have been encountered to push the timeline back another year.
What’s a bit puzzling here is that Elec Report talks about 2027 as being the “first OLED MacBook release date” (unless something got lost in translation from Korean), and as far as we know, The MacBook Pro won’t be the first Apple laptop to debut with OLED.
We’ve previously heard that the MacBook Pro isn’t a priority for Apple when it comes to the OLED upgrade, and we’ll likely get the MacBook Air with the new display technology first. Rumor has it that it will launch next year (along with those iPad Pro models). Again, this is Young’s predicament, and also that of Ming-Chi Kuo, another heavyweight Apple leaker.
However, if you’ve got your heart set on an OLED screen-equipped MacBook Pro, you’ve probably had a long, long time to save up for that purchase. In fact, price may even have been a factor in the decision to delay OLED for the Pro, given that MacBook sales are currently down. As The Alec points out, MacBook production is set to be cut significantly this year, with Apple-manufactured laptops expected to drop by about 20% compared to 2022.
That’s quite a letdown, and raising prices for already expensive MacBook models (which OLED will certainly include) probably isn’t a strategy Apple wants to consider going forward, not for the time being.
