Apple is reportedly planning to eliminate the notch from its MacBook Pro models by 2026, according to a roadmap by research firm Omdia that was shared by MacRumors. It is revealed that future 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros will feature a hole-punch camera instead of the current notch design.
Whether this will be a simple pinhole or an adaptation of the iPhone’s Dynamic Island for system alerts remains unclear. Its removal will potentially result in a more seamless display with additional visible pixels, potentially increasing the usable area of the macOS menu bar.
Unlike its counterpart on older iPhones, the MacBook’s notch only serves to house a webcam and is not equipped with Apple’s Face ID technology. As noted in our reviews of the MacBook Air M2 and M3, this implementation unnecessarily takes up space for no other purpose than to maintain design consistency with other products from the brand, such as its smartphones and iPad tablets.
Additionally, Omdia’s roadmap aligns with rumours of Apple’s first MacBook Pro models featuring OLED displays arriving in 2026. This display upgrade marks the first major redesign for the MacBook Pro since 2021, with the shift expected to bring thinner designs, brighter displays, higher contrast ratios and improved energy efficiency.
In the meantime, the MacBook Pro lineup will see incremental updates, including next year’s anticipated M5, M5 Pro, and M5 Max chip upgrades. However, no significant design changes are expected until the transition to OLED technology.
While the MacBook Pro moves toward a notch-less future, Omdia claims that Apple’s MacBook Air models won’t follow suit for some time. Instead, they are only expected to drop notched displays starting 2028, which is disappointing if true.
(Source: MacRumors)
