OLED MacBook still at least 2 years away

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Apple’s switch from LCD to OLED in its MacBook line isn’t moving quickly. A pair of respected industry analysts agree that it won’t happen before 2026.

The change should improve the performance of the display, but might also drive up the price of macOS notebooks.

OLED MacBook coming in two years?

MacBook Pro models currently use mini-LED displays, which are LCDs augmented with thousands of tiny LEDs as backlights that can illuminate very specific areas of the screen. In contrast, MacBook Air models have less expensive LCDs with traditional backlights.

But Apple is in the process of transitioning its devices to OLED (short for organic light-emitting diode), in which each pixel glows on its own. The result is a bright, even image with strong contrast. This type of screen looks so good, it’s already used for iPhone and Apple Watch. And the most-recent M4 iPad Pro has one, too.

Bringing the display tech to MacBook seems inevitable. That just leaves the question of timing. A pair of trusted experts weighed in Tuesday with bad news. Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst with TF International Securities, started it by saying via X, “I think the 2025 MacBook Pro will continue to use the mini-LED.”

And then Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain Consultants, replied saying, “I agree with you about 2025 MacBook Pro’s still using MiniLEDs.”

To be clear, both analysts have predicted in the past that Apple will put OLED screens in its notebooks. It just won’t be as soon as some people hope. Still, neither of the experts eliminated 2026 as the year for an OLED MacBook.

OLED: Looks better but costs more

OLED panels have not yet made it to MacBook because of cost. The panels are harder to produce and therefore come with higher price tags. That’s why OLED went first into the tiny displays used in Apple Watch before making the jump to larger iPhone screens and now the 13-inch iPad.

Including OLED in the 13-inch iPad Pro this spring helped add $100 to the price. If used now, a 16-inch OLED panel would probably add even more. MacBook Pro is already Apple’s most expensive laptop: the 16-inch variant starts at $2,499. Cupertino apparently doesn’t want to increase that.

Still, Apple’s October 2026 event could well include a 16-inch OLED MacBook Pro with an Apple M6 processor. One with a folding screen isn’t likely before 2027.