MacBook Pro rumor points to OLED, touchscreen upgrades next year

Apple just announced 14-inch MacBook Pro updates that add a new generation M5 processor, faster storage, and a promise of 24-hour battery life, but Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman now reports next year’s refresh will be more thorough.

For several years, Gurman has said that, according to his sources, the next major MacBook Pro revamp would add touchscreens, OLED displays, and a lighter, thinner frame. He reported last month that nothing has changed about that plan other than pushing it back from a late 2025 launch due to OLED supply issues, and today, he expanded on those rumors with details of codenames (K114 and K116) and other specs.

While Windows laptops have had touchscreens for years, Apple has avoided them, instead adding the Touch Bar to its machines for a few years before changing course in 2021. The report also teases another change that’s already a Windows feature but absent on Macs — a shift from Touch ID fingerprint scanning to Face ID authentication, which he says is still years away.

Before that, he says we should still expect to see M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro updates with the current design released early next year. Similarly, updated versions of the MacBook Air, Mac Studio, Mac Mini, and two monitors are in the works.

According to Gurman, the new MacBook Pros will contain M6 series Apple processors, a hole-punch style integrated webcam that’s more like the iPhone’s front-facing camera with its Dynamic Island, and reinforced hinges that don’t bounce around or shift while using the touchscreen. 

The bad news? Those changes are expected to increase the prices by “a few hundred dollars,” and they’re unlikely to reach Apple’s cheaper laptops the first time around.