Apple’s OLED Touchscreen MacBook Pro: Everything We Know So Far

Apple is preparing one of the biggest MacBook upgrades in years, with a new high-end model expected to combine an OLED display, touchscreen controls, a redesigned chassis, and Apple’s Pro-level silicon. The machine has been informally described as the “MacBook Ultra,” although Apple could still release it as a premium version of the MacBook Pro.

The new MacBook is currently expected between late 2026 and early 2027, with recent reports suggesting early 2027 has become more likely as Apple deals with continuing memory supply constraints.

Here is everything reported so far about Apple’s first OLED touchscreen MacBook.

A major MacBook Pro redesign is coming

Apple introduced the current general MacBook Pro design with the 14-inch and 16-inch models in 2021, so the upcoming machine represents a much larger hardware change than the yearly processor updates Apple has delivered since then.

Reports describe the new models, internally associated with the K114 and K116 codenames, as redesigned high-end 14-inch and 16-inch MacBooks with thinner bodies and substantially different displays.

Apple is also expected to replace the large display notch with a smaller camera cutout resembling the Dynamic Island used on the iPhone. The Mac version could display information and interface elements around the camera area while freeing more of the menu bar.

The rumored changes include:

• A thinner MacBook chassis
• 14-inch and 16-inch screen sizes
• OLED panels
• Touchscreen input
• A smaller Dynamic Island-style camera cutout
• Reinforced display hinges
• Continued use of a physical keyboard and trackpad

OLED would bring the biggest MacBook display change in years

The current MacBook Pro uses a Liquid Retina XDR display based on mini-LED technology, while the redesigned premium model is expected to move to OLED.

OLED controls light at the individual pixel level, allowing pixels to switch completely off when displaying black. That produces true blacks, much higher perceived contrast, faster pixel response times, and more precise brightness control than conventional LCD-based displays.

Reports also point to an oxide TFT backplane, which can improve power efficiency and support a wide adaptive refresh-rate range.

OLED is already established across Apple’s iPhone, Apple Watch, and iPad Pro families, but scaling high-quality OLED panels to laptop sizes has taken longer and adds considerable production cost.

Apple is finally adding a touchscreen to the Mac

The more significant change is touch support. Apple has resisted touchscreen Macs for years, but the redesigned MacBook is expected to let users control macOS directly with their fingers.

Apple reportedly plans to keep the keyboard and trackpad, so touch will work as another input method rather than replacing traditional Mac controls. The company is also developing interface changes designed to make controls easier to use with either a pointer or a finger.

For example, touching certain buttons could open larger contextual controls around the user’s finger, reducing the precision normally required when navigating desktop interfaces with touch.

Apple is also expected to strengthen the display hinge so the screen remains stable when users tap or swipe it.

M5 Pro and M5 Max chips now look likely

One surprising part of the latest reporting concerns Apple silicon. Earlier rumors pointed toward M6-series processors for the redesigned MacBook, but more recent information indicates that the first OLED touchscreen models will use M5 Pro and M5 Max chips.

Apple already launched the M5 Pro and M5 Max in March 2026. The chips include improved GPU architecture, higher memory bandwidth, and stronger hardware acceleration for AI workloads compared with the previous generation.

The reported change comes as Apple’s broader chip roadmap shifts toward the M7 generation. Current reporting indicates that Apple does not plan to introduce M6 Pro or M6 Max processors, meaning using the existing M5 Pro and M5 Max allows Apple to launch the redesigned MacBook without waiting for M7 Pro and M7 Max.

A second-generation version using M7 Pro and M7 Max chips is reportedly planned for late 2027 or early 2028.

MacBook Ultra pricing could be very high

Apple has not announced pricing, but the combination of OLED panels, touchscreen hardware, a redesigned chassis, and expensive memory makes this unlikely to be a modestly priced MacBook.

Apple increased MacBook Pro prices in June 2026 as rising RAM and NAND storage costs affected hardware production. The high-end 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 Pro now starts at $2,499, while the 16-inch model starts at $2,999.

That gives us a useful starting point:

Apple has not confirmed the “Ultra” branding or an exact starting price, so estimates beyond the current MacBook Pro pricing remain speculative.

When will the MacBook Ultra launch?

The reported launch window currently stretches from late 2026 into early 2027. Mass production has previously been expected around late 2026, although ongoing memory shortages have increased the chance that Apple pushes wider availability into early 2027.

Apple is also reducing some 2026 hardware shipment plans because DRAM supply remains constrained, which gives the company another reason to be cautious with a memory-intensive premium MacBook launch.

If the current reports hold, the MacBook Ultra will introduce several important Mac firsts at once, including OLED and direct touchscreen input, while delivering the first substantial MacBook Pro redesign since 2021. The final name remains uncertain, but the hardware itself is shaping up to be Apple’s most significant professional laptop update in years.