The wait for a MacBook Air with an OLED display might take longer than initially expected.
Korean website The Elec yesterday cited an industry source who said the first MacBook Air with an OLED display will likely be released around 2029, instead of by 2027 as originally planned. The report said Apple made this decision as a result of lower-than-expected sales of the first iPad Pro models with OLED displays, which launched last year.
Essentially, the report claims that since OLED displays did not help to boost iPad Pro sales as much as Apple anticipated, the company has decided to delay bringing the expensive technology to the MacBook Air. However, it is unclear if there are any other reasons for the apparent delay that are not mentioned in the report.
While the MacBook Air will apparently stick with LCD technology for the next four years, the report claims that Apple plans to use "oxide TFT" technology for 2027 models. This upgrade would allow for improved color accuracy, higher contrast ratio, more uniform display brightness, and lower power consumption for longer battery life. So, while no OLED, the MacBook Air should still receive meaningful display improvements in two years from now.
MacBook Pro models with OLED displays are still expected to launch next year.
In the meantime, Apple will likely announce updated 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air models with the M4 chip within the next month or two.
