Apple Is Expected to Launch These Four MacBooks in 2026

[Sami13496]

To be honest, I’m absolutely furious that Apple has forgotten all of its core principles and the design of genuinely useful solutions. They’ve started releasing gimmicks like Samsung and others, with the goal of selling toys to people who are bored and just want to buy something new simply for the sake of it being new. I mean, a touchscreen MacBook? There’s no sense in that at all. Except if you want to say that the feature exists on the spec sheet.

To elaborate…

Ergonomics is a major problem. Using a vertical touchscreen for long periods causes arm and shoulder fatigue, often called “gorilla arm”. Laptops are not held like tablets, so reaching forward to touch the screen constantly is uncomfortable and impractical.

The user interface is not designed for touch. macOS is built around precise cursor control, small interface elements, menus, and hover states. Touch input is less accurate and would make many interactions slower and more frustrating.

It breaks workflow efficiency. Trackpads and keyboards are faster for productivity tasks like writing, coding, editing, and multitasking. Touch is usually slower and less precise for these kinds of tasks.

Fingerprints and smudges would become a constant issue. A MacBook display is meant to be visually clean and readable, but touchscreens quickly get covered in fingerprints and grease, reducing visual clarity and overall user experience.

There is no natural use position for touching a laptop screen. On a tablet, the screen is close and held in your hands. On a laptop, the screen is upright and farther away, making touch interaction awkward and physically inefficient.

It would increase weight, thickness, and cost. A touchscreen requires extra layers and hardware, making the device heavier, thicker, more fragile, and more expensive with very little real benefit.

Battery life would suffer. Touchscreens consume more power and require additional components, which would reduce battery life, one of the MacBook’s biggest strengths.

The trackpad is already best-in-class. Apple’s trackpads are extremely precise, responsive, and support advanced gestures. A touchscreen would mostly duplicate existing functionality in a worse and less comfortable way.

It would blur the product line between the iPad and the Mac. Apple already offers iPads for touch-based computing, and adding touch to MacBooks would reduce the clarity of each product’s purpose instead of improving usability.

Touch sounds intuitive, but in practice it usually is not. Many laptops with touchscreens end up with users barely using the touch feature after the novelty wears off, because traditional input methods are simply better.

 

[kuito]

But also no reason not to have one ;-)

Fair but it’s just asking you to put finger prints on your own screen.. lol. THE HORROR! lol 🙂

 

[kuito]

Like the iPhone Air, it will fail probably, people will go for the non touch version probably because of cost and practicality

Probably will be around a while though like the Touch Bar but the mistake was eventually corrected 🙂

 

[Eidorian]

Trying to determine the video, specially AV1, decode and encode capabilities of Apple's SoCs is getting really annoying. It looks like the M5 still doesn't have AV1 encode. That just means a refurbished MacBook Air is just as good.

 

[transpo1]

There is, it costs money, adds more layers to the screen (affects repairability), takes up system resources, etc.

All things that Apple has overlooked before ;-)

 

[unomas77]

I bought my 13 inch M2Air three years ago and it’s been great, but I’m ready to make the jump to the M5 air. I’m thinking 32gb of RAM and 1TB SSD. Final Cut runs well on the M2 air, I’m sure the extra CPU and GPU boost will make it fly on the M5. Will we see an M7 air have more GPU power than the M1 Max? The M5 air should be about 70% of the way there with a more powerful CPU.

 

[Maven1975]

Im wondering if we will see something different than a standard touch screen.

I could see them introducing a new MacBook Touch line that has dual displays without a traditional keyboard. This would use touch and haptics for tactile feedback when typing.

Would fall in line with the iPhone fold...

 

[Isamilis]

2026 could be a bumper year for Apple's Mac lineup, with the company expected to announce as many as four separate MacBook launches. Rumors suggest Apple will court both ends of the consumer spectrum, with more affordable options for students and feature-rich premium lines for users that seek the highest specifications from a laptop.

Below is a breakdown of what we're expecting over the next 12 months from Apple's multi-pronged MacBook offering. Got your eye on a particular model? Let us know in the comments what you're looking forward to most.

Low-Cost MacBook

Apple is preparing to enter the low-cost laptop market for the first time by developing a budget MacBook aimed at luring away customers from Chromebooks and entry-level Windows PCs, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The new device is said to be designed for students, businesses, and casual users, and will target people who mainly browse the web, work on documents, or dabble in light media editing.

The new MacBook is said to have a 13-inch display, similar to but slightly smaller than the MacBook Air, and will feature an ultra-thin, lightweight design with a lower-end LCD display. According to reputable industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is said to be using its A18 Pro chip to power the machine. The A18 Pro chip debuted in the iPhone 16 Pro and is around 40% slower than Apple's latest M4 chip, but its multi-core CPU performance is virtually identical to the M1 chip in the 2020 MacBook Air, and it even outperforms the M1 chip for graphics.

The A18 Pro chip lacks Thunderbolt support, so the new MacBook would likely be equipped with regular USB-C ports. The current 13-inch MacBook Air starts at $999 in the U.S., so the new MacBook would likely have a starting price of between $699 and $899. The more-affordable MacBook could also come in some fun new colors like Silver, Blue, Pink, and Yellow.

MacBook Pro With M5 Pro and M5 Max

Apple is going to refresh the rest of the MacBook Pro lineup with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips in early 2026, having already updated its base 14-inch MacBook Pro with a standard M5 chip in October. The M5 series is based on TSMC's third-generation 3-nanometer technology. Based on improvements to the base MacBook Pro with M5 chip, faster SSD performance and higher memory bandwith are also likely for the high-end models. No other major changes are expected, with Apple holding over a completely refreshed design until the M6 models.

If Apple retains current pricing levels, the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 Pro chip will start at $1,999, while the 16-inch model with M5 Pro chip will start at $2,399. For the M5 Max equivalents, prices could start at $3,199 for the 14-inch model, and $3,499 for the 16-inch machine.

M5 MacBook Air

While the M4 MacBook Air model isn't exactly old, attention is already turning to its successor. The M5 series is reportedly being manufactured using TSMC's advanced 3-nanometer process technology, and we have some idea of what to expect in terms of performance, thanks to the recently released M5 iPad Pro: benchmarks show single-core scores around 4,133 and multi-core scores around 15,437. That's roughly a 12-15% jump over the M4 iPad Pro in both categories. As for graphics performance, the M5 chip appears to have up to a 36% faster GPU compared to the M4 chip.

The benchmark suggests Apple has focused on modest clock speed increases and core-level efficiency improvements for the M5 chip, rather than an architecture overhaul. In other words, the M5 will be similar to the step-wise performance upgrade from M3 to M4. Expect 10-15% faster CPU speeds, a slightly more powerful GPU, and better efficiency, potentially leading to even longer battery life.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that Apple plans to roll out M5 versions of the MacBook Air in the first quarter of this year. Based on previous spring refreshes, this suggests a likely March 2026 window. As for pricing, we expect it to remain stable, with the base model sticking with the current entry-level $999 price.

MacBook Pro With Touchscreen OLED Display

Apple is reportedly developing a completely new version of the MacBook Pro packed with next-generation hardware features. The redesigned models are expected to boast M6 chips, which could adopt a completely new packaging based on TSMC's 2nm process that allows components such as the CPU, GPUs, DRAM, and Neural Engine to be more tightly integrated.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman says Apple is readying OLED technology for these models. Compared to current MacBook Pro models that use mini-LED screens, the benefits of OLED technology would include increased brightness, higher contrast ratio with deeper blacks, improved power efficiency for longer battery life, and more. In addition, Gurman reports that the new machines will also have "thinner and lighter frames." Apple is apparently focusing on delivering the thinnest possible device without compromising on battery life or major new features.

The redesigned 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models are also expected to have a hole-punch camera at the top of the display, rather than the notch we've become accustomed to. Gurman says that the design "leaves a display area around the sensor... similar in concept to the Dynamic Island on the iPhone."

Apple's first OLED MacBook Pro will also feature a touchscreen display, according to analyst... Click here to read rest of article

Article Link: Apple Is Expected to Launch These Four MacBooks in 2026

I will buy it if it can run pre-Tahoe version - very unlikely but who knows…

 

[Arthur75]

Think I'll wait till the second iteration on the new design (currently having M1 max, so first iteration current design, don't feel like upgrading much, and using it in clamshell desktop mode most of the time), good thing to be in phase regarding design upgrade cycle ! 🙂

 

[Mainsail]

Excited to see Apple working on and refining its MacBook line-up. Some of these will be a success and there might be a loser or two in the bunch....that's product development. No guarantees. I am not sure I get the low cost MB, since you can get the M4 MBA on sale for $749, but it might find a niche.

Personally, I really like my base M2 MBA. It meets all of my needs. However, I will probably wait to buy when a new MBA design/model is released in a couple of years, since my current MBA is working great.

 

[JungleNYC]

Gonna be interesting to see the difference between the new Air and the new "low cost" MacBook. Because the current Air is the ~ same thickness and weight as the pro, just nerfed.

 

[Mainsail]

Gonna be interesting to see the difference between the new Air and the new "low cost" MacBook. Because the current Air is the ~ same thickness and weight as the pro, just nerfed.

I would check that. Per Apple's website: The Air is 2.7lbs and .44in thick. The Pro is 3.5lbs and .61in thick.

 

[JungleNYC]

I would check that. Per Apple's website: The Air is 2.7lbs and .44in thick. The Pro is 3.5lbs and .61in thick.

Yeah, I used the ~ thingy because I knew it was close, but not exact. It's still not a significant difference, like the original wedge was.

 

[Mainsail]

Yeah, I used the ~ thingy because I knew it was close, but not exact. It's still not a significant difference, like the original wedge was.

Well, the original 2010 wedge MBA (2.96lbs) actually weighed more than the current MBA (2.7lbs), and it had a larger footprint with a smaller screen because of the large bezel. Don't get me wrong, I owned the 2014 MBA, and it was terrific for its time....but, really no comparison with the latest model.

BTW - the very first 2008 MBA, which was a significantly gimped iteration and sold poorly, weighted 3 lbs as well.

 

[Apple MessagePad]

Same. But of course, that's why they do it. They want people like to us to get the Pro instead. I'm sure they will milk it as long as they can, as they did with the iPhone. But the fact that they brought ProMotion to the non-Pro iPhone tells me that a MacBook Air with ProMotion will happen eventually.

Eventually? The Air doesn't even have XDR display and that's been around since 2019. Sure, it'll come to the Air a few years after the Pro has moved been on to the better next thing for half a decade.

 

[Kayak49]

Walmart is announcing “low stock” for the new MacBook Air M1 8/256 that they’ve been offering for $599. I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple announces “something” very soon, like perhaps the low cost MacBook.

 

[McNoise]

Apple is preparing to enter the low-cost laptop market for the first time by developing a budget MacBook aimed at luring away customers from Chromebooks and entry-level Windows PCs, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

Two lies in one sentence. Nothing in Apple's product range is or ever will be cheap. The history of the (non-professional) Macbbok dates back to 2006, followed by 2015... and they try another attempt now for whatever reason. Probably because it's now quite easy to put the SOC into any kind of housing and see how things sell.

 

[Dirk Pieters]

Imagine spending 3/4 of a thousand dollars to lose an inch and a few grams for a lower specced machine to use in place of the expensive machine you have already bought to meet all of the same use cases and more.

Everyone’s free to spend their money the way they want. Different needs for different people.

 

[Tagbert]

Gonna be interesting to see the difference between the new Air and the new "low cost" MacBook. Because the current Air is the ~ same thickness and weight as the pro, just nerfed.

Apple’s Tech Specs show that the current Air is only .44 inches thick vs .61 inches for the MBP. The MBP is 0.7 pounds heavier.

BTW the current Air is thinner than the old Air. While that one was thin in the front, it was 0.63 inches chonky in the rear.

MBA M4 (13.6 in screen)

• Height: 0.44 inch (1.13 cm)
• Width: 11.97 inches (30.41 cm)
• Depth: 8.46 inches (21.5 cm)
• Weight: 2.7 pounds (1.24 kg)

MBP M5 (14 in screen)

• Height: 0.61 inch (1.55 cm)
• Width: 12.31 inches (31.26 cm)
• Depth: 8.71 inches (22.12 cm)
• Weight (M5): 3.4 pounds (1.55 kg)

MBA M1 (13.3 in screen)

• Height: 0.16 in (0.41 cm) to 0.63 in (1.6 cm)
• Width: 11.97 in (30.4 cm)
• Depth: 8.36 in (21.2 cm)
• Weight: 2.8 lb (1.27 kg)

 

[mac&cheez]

So the A18 pro can run macOS...hmmmm

 

[hgfjhbvytjdnb]

Everyone’s free to spend their money the way they want. Different needs for different people.

That's what geniuses of your sort kept repeating when Johnny introduced the butterfly keyboard 10 years ago. Just because millions of flies like eating sht, doesn't mean sht is a good thing that nobody should criticise.

 

[Dirk Pieters]

That's what geniuses of your sort kept repeating when Johnny introduced the butterfly keyboard 10 years ago. Just because millions of flies like eating sht, doesn't mean sht is a good thing that nobody should criticise.

That keyboard was ****. That new laptop isn’t even real yet, so unsure what you’re on about.

Who cares if someone buys 2 laptops?

 

[hgfjhbvytjdnb]

That new laptop isn’t even real yet

I bet you wish you realised this before you posted your comment then? Or do you just enjoy playing the contrarian corporate simp game?

 

[KPOM]

To elaborate…

Ergonomics is a major problem. Using a vertical touchscreen for long periods causes arm and shoulder fatigue, often called “gorilla arm”. Laptops are not held like tablets, so reaching forward to touch the screen constantly is uncomfortable and impractical.

Touch sounds intuitive, but in practice it usually is not. Many laptops with touchscreens end up with users barely using the touch feature after the novelty wears off, because traditional input methods are simply better.

These points are valid, but there’s now an entire generation who grew up with touchscreens and may “expect” the functionality to be there, even if it isn’t used much. For instance, if a pop-up box comes up, people often reach out to the screen out of habit.

Apple could also incorporate Apple Pencil support, though this would be more practical if the screen detached or folded completely flat.

 

[KPOM]

Walmart is announcing “low stock” for the new MacBook Air M1 8/256 that they’ve been offering for $599. I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple announces “something” very soon, like perhaps the low cost MacBook.

Interesting. Apple probably did one last production run last year for the holiday season (when it dropped to $499). The M1 has gotten good reviews on Walmart’s website so I’m guessing they want to continue offering something.