Apple is going to replace the camera in the MacBook Pro with a new model from another supplier, at least that’s what a respected leaker believes. This could make the laptop smaller.
This is analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, one of the most reliable sources for speculation about Apple, who on Medium to inform us that the MacBook maker will use Sunny Optical’s compact camera module in the MacBook Pro M5 (which is scheduled for release in 2025, as a successor to the M4 model that is scheduled for release later this year).
MacRumors saw the post and reminds us that webcams for MacBooks are currently supplied by LG InnoTek and Sharp.
We can expect Sunny Optical to deliver both a camera module and lenses in one package. If all goes well with the new (rumored) partnership, Apple could eventually turn to the Chinese company for iPhone and iPad cameras.
Now sprinkle the usual spices over it and remember that this is just a rumor for now.
Analysis: The quest for ever thinner laptops
Why is a new webcam so interesting? Well – if it happens – it would likely mean a slimmer camera for the MacBook Pro (and probably a higher-quality model, to boot – and any component upgrade is always good, even a minor one).
A thinner camera module could be part of Apple’s grand plan to make the ‘thin’ possible (see the latest iPad) for the MacBook. There are already rumors that the MacBook Pro will be made slimmer in future versions.
While the MacBook Pro M4 that’s rumored to launch later this year doesn’t feature many design changes based on rumors (or lack thereof), its 2025 successor – which, as noted, is expected to pack the M5 chip – is expected to feature more significant changes in an effort to push it higher up the best laptop charts. And going slimmer could be a key plank of any redesign, with a handy new webcam perhaps playing a small but important role.
That said, the MacBook Pro’s real slimming down may not happen until OLED comes into play – which will be a key trump card in the quest for thinner notebooks – and that’s rumored for 2026 at the earliest. But you never quite know how all these rumors will pan out…