M6 MacBook Pro could offer this long-awaited upgrade — and it'll be a game changer

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2026 could be a big year for the Mac

MacBook Pro 16-inch (M4 Pro, 2024)
(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

All of the best MacBooks have been relatively predictable for the last few years. The ‘new’ design, which debuted in 2021, doesn’t feel all that new nowadays, and one of its more contentious inclusions is the notch. Housing the camera, it's always felt like Apple making the best of a bad situation.

Now, it appears the Cupertino crew could be preparing to retire the controversial feature and replace it with something else entirely, alongside a new OLED panel in time for the M6 versions of the machine (expected in 2026 after this year’s M5 models).

Apple to move to OLED for next year’s MacBook Pro?

According to new reports, Apple’s M6 MacBook Pro could feature a tandem OLED panel, similar to what is currently available in the M4 iPad Pro.

And, backing up previous rumors, this could spell the end for the notch. Notebook Check has suggested that the MacBook Pro webcam could be moved to a punch-hole (similar to phones from other manufacturers), freeing up the space around it for the Dynamic Island to make its debut on Mac.

This clever feature arrived with iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, and is still going strong in the iPhone 16 lineup — allowing Live Activities to occupy a smaller space on your screen. Using your music player? Tap the Dynamic Island to make it full-screen, or use it to track your takeaway delivery.

Lending more credence to the idea of Dynamic Island debuting on Mac is that Live Activities have landed on the Mac in the upcoming macOS Tahoe.

At the moment, they pop up in your Menu Bar, but it’s not a wild idea to think we could see them in a Dynamic Island on Mac soon.

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Lloyd Coombes
Lloyd Coombes
Contributing writer

Lloyd Coombes is a freelance tech and fitness writer. He's an expert in all things Apple as well as in computer and gaming tech, with previous works published on TechRadar, Tom's Guide, Live Science and more. You'll find him regularly testing the latest MacBook or iPhone, but he spends most of his time writing about video games as Gaming Editor for the Daily Star. He also covers board games and virtual reality, just to round out the nerdy pursuits.

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