Apple has scheduled an all-day product launch in Los Angeles on Oct. 28, where it will unveil new touchscreen MacBooks, a refreshed iPad mini, and M6 MacBooks, according to reporting by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The company has begun inviting media to the event. The launch would end years of rumors about an OLED touchscreen MacBook.
The new MacBooks are expected to arrive in two lines. One line features OLED touchscreens in 14- and 16-inch sizes inside a redesigned, more lightweight body. The other is a 14-inch MacBook with the base model M6 chip and a largely unchanged build. The OLED models will carry the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips and are reported to be significantly lighter, suggesting physical redesigns that set them apart from earlier models.
Those premium OLED MacBooks are also rumored to replace the notch with a Dynamic Island and could support 5G connectivity, presumably as an optional add-on. Gurman said the OLED MacBooks, code-named MacBook Ultra, are likely to be pricey, which he noted is no surprise given the current market. Splitting the lineup this way would let Apple pursue a premium tier of AI-powered MacBooks aimed at enthusiasts and power users while keeping the core laptop line for most buyers. The M6 MacBook Pro would essentially be what would otherwise be expected in the 14-inch model, probably with a focus on Siri and AI-powered features in MacOS. That configuration would match Apple's September Mac Mini release, which launched with either the M5 Pro chip or the base model M6 at half the price.
Apple is also reportedly announcing a new iPad Mini with an OLED display, the first refresh to its small tablet since 2024, when it carried the A17 Pro chip. The new Mini will come with the M6 chip and be considerably more expensive, likely starting at $799 compared with its current starting price of $599. Other changes include moving the camera to the long end so it is used in landscape mode instead of portrait, plus an all-new speaker system.
The 8-inch iPad Mini now sits in a unique position in Apple's lineup because of the iPhone Duo, which measures 7.6 inches fully extended and is nearly the same size. Apple may be looking to differentiate the device through its new OLED display, better speakers and camera, and a revamped iPadOS.
Apple faces a tablet market that is about to heat up. Amazon recently announced its new lineup of Alexa Tablets, including a 12-inch Pro model with a nanomatte anti-glare display, along with kid-focused devices with increased durability and bright colors. The new Alexa tablets have a more premium construction, Google Play Store support, and many integrations with the Alexa home assistant and Amazon's smart home ecosystem.
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