We don’t know yet if we’re getting the new Macs this month, but if they do arrive, there may be a surprise that’s bigger than the M3 chip. According to a new icon spotted in the latest iPadOS 17.1 beta, the Mac might be getting the Dynamic Island in place of its notch.
IceCoolTech on X (formerly Twitter) has shared an image of a MacBook Pro when using Universal Control on the latest iPadOS 17.1 beta. The image shows a MacBook with a Dynamic Island instead of a notch.
It’s worth noting that previous images of MacBooks in the Universal Control sidebar didn’t show a notch at all, so it could be a mistake or an image meant to show some other function. But at first glance, it definitely appears to show the Dynamic Island at the top of a MacBook screen.
Apple introduced the new-look MacBook screen with a notch in October 2021 when it launched the M1 Pro MacBook Pro. It then arrived on the 13-inch MacBook Air in 2022 and the 15-inch MacBook Air in 2023. There isn’t a technical reason for the notch to be as wide as it is on the MacBook since it only houses a single camera and doesn’t have Face ID, but it created a design harmony with the iPhone.
Now that the entire iPhone 15 line has the Dynamic Island, it makes sense that it would come to the MacBook as well, bringing similar functionality with Live Activities to macOS so you can keep up with scores, timers, and tasks at a glance.
Apple is expected to launch updated MacBooks with M3 processors and iMac with M3 soon, possibly later this month via a press release. There haven’t been any rumors about a redesign to accommodate the Dynamic Island.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor
Michael Simon has been covering Apple since the iPod was the iWalk. His obsession with technology goes back to his first PC—the IBM Thinkpad with the lift-up keyboard for swapping out the drive. He's still waiting for that to come back in style tbh.