Apple may launch the foldable MacBook model in 2026

Over the past two years, periodic rumours have suggested that Apple has been continually exploring the feasibility of a foldable MacBook. It is understood that Apple holds considerable interest in foldable laptops, maintaining a markedly proactive stance and even deliberating its viability with suppliers, potentially earmarking this as a fresh product line.

Previous reports have proposed that Apple may launch a 20.5-inch foldable MacBook in 2025, equipped with a full-size screen keyboard, supplanting the physical keyboard with a virtual one. In its unfolded state, it can serve as a large-screen monitor, with an auxiliary keyboard for use. According to Business Korea, Apple has already conducted negotiations with panel suppliers regarding the foldable MacBook project, planning to unveil the product in 2025, with an intended market launch in 2026.

In comparison to the screens utilised in smartphones, laptop panels are larger, consequently yielding higher profits and a greater appeal to manufacturers. Samsung has resolved to invest 4.1 trillion Korean won (equivalent to approximately $3.158 billion / 22.796 billion RMB) for the production of 8.6 generation OLED panels between 2025 and 2026. LG has also intensified its investment in medium-sized OLED panels for products such as tablets.

With the recent surge in foldable phone sales, Korean supply chain manufacturers plan to adapt their production lines to better cater to the foldable device market’s demands. If the foldable MacBook project materialises, it would expedite Korean panel companies’ coordination of development and production plans for corresponding foldable OLED panels. Panel suppliers also hope that Apple’s foldable MacBook could present new business opportunities, bolstering the flagging display market.

In competition, ASUS launched its first foldable OLED screen notebook as early as last September, namely the 17.3-inch ZenBook X Fold, a product we have reviewed (click here for review). The flexible OLED screen is exclusively supplied by BOE and is the largest flexible OLED foldable end product that can currently be mass-produced worldwide.