Should You Wait for the OLED iMac? New Roadmap Suggests a Long Delay
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Following recent news that the large-screened iMac Pro could be making a comeback, Apple may have a surprise in store for users of its 24-inch consumer-grade all-in-one Mac, which could get new OLED technology even before it comes to the rumored bigger screen.
Last week, South Korea’s The Elec, which tracks supply chain news, reported on Apple’s plans to bring OLED displays to its Macs. While the consensus among industry sources is that this will first come to an M6 MacBook Pro in late 2026, the 24-inch M-series iMac may not be too far behind.
The roadmap for OLED adoption beyond the MacBook Pro is a bit unclear right now. The only thing we know for sure is the Apple is working on multiple OLED displays for everything from the MacBook Air to the iPad mini, so it’s not so much a question of “if” but “when” these displays will appear. Some analysts have pointed to a scheduled early 2027 M6 MacBook Air refresh as the moment the display technology will come to Apple’s entire MacBook lineup, while others are being more circumspect in saying it could take until 2028, giving the flagship MacBook Pro a longer period of exclusivity.
The 24-inch iMac tosses an extra wildcard into this mix. Apple appears to be at an early stage on this roadmap, so it’s unlikely to appear before a 2027 refresh. However, it remains to be seen whether Apple plans to wait until the 24-inch OLED panels are ready or release another LED iMac in the interim. The company has already demonstrated a willingness to skip years when it comes to the iMac, but it’s also notable that we didn’t get an M5 version alongside its new MacBook Pro and iPad Pro in October, so we’d arguably be long overdue for a new one by the time 2027 rolls around.
What’s interesting is that it appears Apple may use the transition to OLED to brighten up the iMac display, with The Elec reporting that it’s requested suppliers to provide 24-inch panels that offer 600 nits of brightness — a 20 percent increase that would make it the brightest consumer-grade all-in-one that Apple has ever made. The other specs, including 4480-by-2520 resolution at 218 pixels per inch (ppi), make it clear that these panel are for the iMac, although t’s not like Apple has any other devices that would use a 24-inch display.
The challenges in producing larger OLED displays to Apple’s specifications could also be an additional fly in the ointment. It’s telling that Apple took six years to move from OLED on the Apple Watch to the iPhone, and then another four to bring it to the iPad. Next year’s M6 MacBook Pro will scale those up to 14- and 16-inch panels, respectively, but 24 inches is a big step beyond that, and The Elec cautions that we may not see this in an iMac until 2028, which almost certainly guarantees that Apple will have one more LED model for us between now and then.
That also adds some bad news for anybody hoping the rumored M5 Max-powered “iMac Pro,” which was recently spotted in leaked internal Apple software, will debut with higher-quality OLED panels. That chip puts this on track for sometime in 2026, and if this is a scaling issue, it could take another few years to move from 24-inch panels to the 30 to 32-inch ones expected on a larger-screened iMac, and it’s highly unlikely we’d see one with an M5-class chip when it finally does arrive.
While TV makers like LG obviously nailed OLED technology years ago, Apple has higher standards for screens that users will be working on all day and need to avoid burn-in from static images like the dock and menu bar. The Elec notes that its the company’s preference for higher-quality panels that use the “RGB OLED” method is the challenge here, as the technology hasn’t yet matured to the level where it can reliably mass-produce larger displays. Samsung is reportedly pitching it five-stack QD-OLED technology that can boost brightness and prevent burn-in as a stopgap while Apple waits for “true” RGB OLED to be ready for 24-inch mass production.
[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]
