Apple's MacBook Pro M5 reportedly close to mass production, but next year may see bigger upgrades

The wait for M5 MacBook Pro models may be coming to an end soon, with Apple's next major laptop now looking at an early 2026 release at the latest.
All-new MacBook Pro models with M5 silicon are close to entering mass production, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, meaning we should see Apple's next-gen 14-inch and 16-inch Pro models arrive sometime between late 2025 and early 2026.
What's more, Gurman states the next MacBook Air M5 and Mac monitors (rumored to be two new Studio Displays) will also be entering production, which should also arrive by the first quarter of 2026, too.
Before all this, however, it's believed that the iPad Pro M5 and Apple Vision Pro 2 will be the first to launch. These have been rumored to arrive as early as October at a possible Apple fall event, with Gurman noting these reveals will be "imminent."
When to expect M5 MacBook Pro models?
While the M5 chip is widely expected to be introduced in an upcoming iPad Pro first, the M5 MacBook Pro models should follow soon after, now that mass production has reportedly been confirmed. While the next-gen laptop could be shown by the end of the year, both Gurman and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (via MacRumors) believe they could skip a fall launch and be revealed in early 2026.
Apple's next MacBook Pro models are expected to arrive with M5, M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, along with the usual 14-inch and 16-inch sizes. With this in mind, there's reason to believe these laptops could be revealed in January, seeing as the Cupertino tech giant previously announced its M2 Pro and M2 Max MacBook Pro models in January 2023.
If this proves to be true, it won't be long until we see M5 chips arrive on Apple's next suite of devices. Along with the MacBook Pro models, we've heard of 10 products set to arrive between now and the first quarter of 2026, including AirTag 2, HomePod 3, an updated Apple TV 4K and more.
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If you've been waiting for an M5-equipped MacBook Pro, though, it may be worth waiting for the model after, if rumors are to be believed.
A true OLED upgrade may arrive after
As with the M4 MacBook Pro, the M5 MacBook Pro models aren't expected to come with any major redesigns. The main upgrade will come from the M5 chipsets, but we could see a new color, an updated 12MP FaceTime camera and Thunderbolt 5 support.
But now, rumors are swirling that the much-anticipated MacBook Pro OLED will launch next year. As reported, it appears Samsung Display will make OLED screens for the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros tipped to arrive in late 2026, but that's not all to look forward to.
As pointed out by Kuo, the OLED MacBook Pro will also come with a touchscreen. The analyst claims these will enter mass production by late 2026, though, so the laptop may come in early 2027 instead. This would be a major jump in what a Pro model could offer, as it would essentially bring the capabilities of an iPad to a MacBook.
Along with the expected launch of M6 chips next year, this would make the follow-up to the M5 Pro laptops an even bigger upgrade. Plus, with iPadOS 26 being more Mac-like than ever, thanks to its windowing system, we're already starting to see how a touchscreen MacBook Pro (with glorious OLED) could work.
Of course, this is expected to be a year away, and we're now looking to see M5 MacBook Pro models in just a few months. This, along with M5 MacBook Air models soon after, seeing as the M4 MacBook Air laptops were announced in March 2024.
While we wait for Apple's latest collection of devices, check out our thoughts on macOS Tahoe 26 (spoiler: it's worth updating to).
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Darragh is Tom’s Guide’s Computing Editor and is fascinated by all things bizarre in tech. His work can be seen in Laptop Mag, Mashable, Android Police, Shortlist Dubai, Proton, theBit.nz, ReviewsFire and more. When he's not checking out the latest devices and all things computing, he can be found going for dreaded long runs, watching terrible shark movies and trying to find time to game
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