Apple in 2026

Apple is about to have one of its best ever years, according to rumours swirling around Cupertino

- WRITTEN BY DAVID CROOKES

Well, it's fair to say that Apple didn't quite set the tech industry alight in 2025. Sure, it wasn't a damp squib by any means, given we saw the introduction of the M5 chip, the high-performing iPhone 17 Pro and the feature-laden AirPods Pro 3 to name but three. Yet sales of iPhone Air fell flat, the much-awaited Siri improvements were delayed and the jury remains out on Liquid Glass.

The good news is that 2026 will be better. Much better. In fact, the more rumours you hear about the products heading our way, the more excited you're sure to become. "I think Apple has a major 2026 in store," Bloomberg tech journalist Mark Gurman told MacFormat. "The beginning of the year will be packed but incremental." So what can we expect?

First off the block is likely to be a new iPhone, notably the iPhone 17e. Rumours suggest it will include an Apple A19 chip but that it will otherwise have the same 6.1-inch display, 60Hz refresh rate and 48MP/12MP sensors as the iPhone 16e. There is also a chance it will have an 18MP Center Stage camera and we may see the notch axed in favour of a Dynamic Island.

Around the same time, we should also see the launch of an affordable MacBook. Analyst Jeff Pu at GF Securities says it may sell for about $599 (£450), feature a 13-inch LCD display and come in a variety of colours. It's also likely to be powered by the A18 Pro chip originally introduced with the iPhone 16 Pro; although, to cut costs, it may come with 8GB of memory.

The MacBook Pro will still fly the flag, however, and that looks set to be infused with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips in early 2026. The M5 chip will almost certainly be integrated in the MacBook Air, and M5 upgrades are also due for the Mac mini. An M5 Ultra chip could appear in a new Mac Studio come summer but the iMac should also get an M5 upgrade, and there's a chance that a further iteration of MacBook Pro squeezed into 2026 will get OLED technology and a new M6 chip.