Summary
- Apple may add a touchscreen to the MacBook Pro refresh expected in late 2026.
- For the longest time, Apple has rejected the idea of putting a touchscreen on the MacBook. But it seems its opinion has changed.
- In addition to getting a touchscreen, Apple’s MacBook Pro update in late 2026 could also feature an OLED display and other design changes.
After years of dismissing the idea of putting a touchscreen on a MacBook, it seems Apple may have finally caved. Its MacBook Pro overhaul in 2026 is now expected to be the first-ever MacBook to feature a touchscreen display, according to a report from supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo on X.
The change will reportedly affect Apple’s next-generation MacBook Pro, which could feature an OLED display and “incorporate a touch panel using on-cell touch technology.” The OLED MacBook Pro isn’t expected to enter production until late 2026, and before then, Apple is expected to launch the M5 MacBook Pro in early 2026.
The OLED MacBook Pro is rumored to be the first major design overhaul to the MacBook Pro since 2021, when Apple introduced the MacBook Pro with its M1 Pro chip. Since then, Apple has used the same design and only refreshed the chipset over the years. Apple did make one design change to the M4 MacBook Pro last year, but it was an optional-added upgrade of the ability to add a Nano-texture display, which reduces reflections on the screen.
So, if these reports are accurate, Apple could potentially release two MacBook Pro models in 2026. Early in the year, it could release an M5 model, and late in the year, it could release an M6 model, with a new design and an OLED display with touch capabilities.
Apple has long rejected the idea of a touchscreen MacBook
It seems Apple may have finally decided it’s time
Hearing that the MacBook Pro may finally get a touchscreen is a bit funny to me, especially since Apple has, for the longest time, said it was something it wasn’t going to do. Why may you ask? Likely because it would blur the line between the iPad and the MacBook. However, with iPadOS 26, it seems Apple is doing that anyway.
Back in 2016, Phil Schiller, Apple’s VP of worldwide marketing at the time, said that Apple tried experimenting with a touchscreen on the Mac, and that the company came “away with the belief that it isn’t the right thing to do” (via 9to5Mac).
In 2012, when Microsoft released its original Surface tablet, a convergence of the PC and tablet, Apple CEO Tim Cook famously said, “You can converge a toaster and refrigerator, but these things are probably not going to be pleasing to the user.”
However, over the past decade, a lot has changed, and now touchscreen Windows laptops are everywhere, and it seems Apple has finally decided that its top-end MacBook Pro needs one too. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard about the MacBook Pro getting a touchscreen, either. Two years ago, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that a touchscreen could be “part of a larger update to the MacBook Pro” in 2025. More recently, in June, Gurman said that he expects “future iPads and Macs to both have touch screens (with vibrant OLED displays).”
I don’t mind the idea of a MacBook Pro having a touchscreen display. However, as silly as it sounds, I don’t know if I’ll ever actually use it.
In addition to the OLED MacBook Pro, Kuo also shared news about a more affordable MacBook model that is rumored to be in development, which includes an iPhone chipset. Kuo says this model is expected to start mass production at the end of 2025. However, unlike the OLED MacBook Pro coming in late 2026, it will not have a touchscreen display. So it seems, for now, Apple is reserving the touchscreen for its most expensive MacBook.
Personally, I don’t mind the idea of a MacBook Pro having a touchscreen display. However, as silly as it sounds, I don’t know if I’ll ever actually use it. I’ve owned quite a few Windows laptops over the years with touchscreens, and I’ve rarely found myself using them. It’s one of those features I think is cool to have, but in reality, I don’t get much use out of it. That said, I understand that many people would probably value being able to simply tap their MacBook Pro screen to open something or for creative tasks. Apple’s OLED MacBook Pro isn’t expected to arrive until late 2026, so it’s still quite a ways off.
