M6 MacBook Pro’s OLED upgrade and redesign may only come to the most expensive models

The M6 MacBook Pro lineup has quickly become the major upgrade we've been longing for, with Apple reportedly planning to finally deliver an OLED touchscreen and a redesigned, thinner chassis. But there's a caveat if you're planning to grab the base M6 model.

As it turns out, the base M6 MacBook Pro may skip out on the biggest upgrades in years, with no OLED or redesign. This comes from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, stating that only the M6 Pro and M6 Max models will receive the revamp.

If accurate, this means that the M6 model will come with the same design and features as the latest MacBook Pro M5, just with an expected boost in performance. And that the OLED upgrade and redesign will be reserved for the more expensive Pro and Max configurations.

The newly designed M6 Pro and M6 Max MacBook Pro models with OLED are believed to be revealed in late 2026 or early 2027, as Gurman claims. However, considering the recent M5-equipped MacBook Pro launched in October, and we're still waiting for the M5 Pro and M5 Max laptops to arrive early next year, it's now looking more likely that we'll see the base M6 model (with no redesign) first, with the upgraded OLED M6 Pro and Max configurations coming after, possibly in 2027.

That's if Apple follows the same release schedule as its M5 MacBook Pro lineup, but only time will tell if this plays out. Unfortunately, with the base M6 laptop now looking set to be virtually identical to what we've seen before, anyone waiting for the significant Pro upgrade will have to pay a premium.

Pay more for OLED

While the MacBook Pro with M6 Pro and M6 Max looks to be an exciting revamp, the upgraded OLED display with touchscreen support, improved silicon with a 2-nanometer process and an overhauled design sporting a slimmer chassis and redesigned hinge doesn't exactly come cheap.

I expect this to be why the base M6 model is missing out on the anticipated upgrades. Instead of increasing the price of the most affordable MacBook Pro (with the 14-inch MacBook Pro with M5 currently $60 off at $1,538), Apple may be planning to make up the cost of the upgrades by offering them exclusively to the pricier Pro and Max models (starting at $1,999 for the 14-inch M4 Pro MacBook Pro, but currently $220 off).

It certainly makes the higher-end Pro and Max models more enticing, especially since these are intended for power users. This also widens the gap between the base M-series chips and the more powerful Pro and Max silicon.

Still, it's disappointing news for those who have been waiting for the most significant upgrades the MacBook Pro has seen since the M1 Pro and M1 Max models. At the very least, Apple is tipped to launch a cheap MacBook running an iPhone chip to rival budget laptops like Chromebooks. But if you're looking to finally get your hands on an OLED MacBook, expect to pay more.

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