An OLED MacBook Pro is expected to be announced around 2027 using the 8th generation of the display. While Samsung has taken the lead and will start developing this technology in the next couple of years, LG is also said to be preparing to manufacture OLED panels for this new MacBook Pro a year later than Samsung.
According to The Elec, UBI research CEO Choong Hoon Yi says LG Display expects to “certainly win orders for its panels from Apple and begin supplying no later than 2026.”
Currently, Samsung is the only company working on 8th gen OLED panels – which will cost the company more than $3 billion in the next decade – and will be followed by LG and BOE. Samsung is expected to start production by 2025, LG by 2026, and BOE by 2027.
But while the manufacturers expect to earn big money with this transition, a continuous decline in MacBook revenue could put this upgrade at risk. In May, The Elec said that both Samsung and LG were hesitant to invest in Gen 8 OLED panels as it is yet “undecided how much Apple will pay” for it. With low MacBook sales, that means that Cupertino firm wouldn’t order as many OLED panels as Samsung and LG would hope.
That said, Choong Hoon Yi sees a better outlook for Samsung and LG than BOE. He says Apple has both companies as “guaranteed customers,” while BOE is continually facing issues with providing OLED panels for iPhone models.
Only one of the three Gen 6 OLED factories the company has built is properly operating. Ultimately, this means BOE will probably start spending on Gen 8 OLED much later than its rival, said UBI Research CEO.
Besides a transition from miniLED to OLED panels, it’s unclear if Apple is planning to change the design of this upcoming MacBook Pro or even which chip it will run on.
