- Edge Light brings ring light feature to MacBook
- This is part of the upcoming macOS Tahoe 26 update
- Developer Beta Available Today with Early Access to New Feature
We’ve all been there: the last-minute video call on our MacBooks where we park in front of a window and end up looking like our own shadow. A ring light could have solved the problem, but who has the time to get one and install it? What if the screen could be your light? The next macOS Tahoe update introduces Edge Light, and as the name suggests, it turns your best MacBook screen into a rectangular ring of light.
Arriving on macOS 26.2 beta today (November 12) and available later this year, Edge Light creates a band of light around the edge of your MacBook, provided it’s running an Apple Silicon processor.
As you might expect, the effect, part of Apple’s MacBook video effects suite (which also includes Portrait Mode, Effects, Voice Isolation, and Studio Light), illuminates a wide border around the outer edge of your MacBook’s screen. It does not cover the menu bar at the top, thus avoiding the notch.
For MacBooks manufactured after 2024, Edge Light can be set to turn on automatically, for example when the system detects that the ambient lighting in the room has dimmed and you are in shadow. As you can imagine, this can be useful for calls in the late afternoon, after Daylight Saving Time, when the sun sets earlier and earlier, and by 4 p.m. you’re plunged into darkness.
It is currently unclear if and when Edge Light could also arrive on iPadOS 26 and Apple Silicon iPad.
There are a handful of controls, mainly for switching from warm to cool light; whether you want the harsh luminosity of a whiter light or the skin-pleasing warmth of a slightly more orange shade.
Thanks to the neural engine built into the system, Edge Light can detect where your face is and even multiple faces and adjust Edge Light accordingly.
It’s not clear how Apple manages the balance between screen display and Micro LED backlighting, for example on the new and excellent M5 14-inch MacBook Pro. However, the intention is not harsh, with regard to the full capabilities of the screen, brightness, and is rather oriented towards pleasant lighting and less eye fatigue.
Edge Light is also smart enough to know that it’s still a laptop screen and will move out of the way if you hover your cursor over it, so as not to block important information on the screen.
Since we don’t know the light level, it’s unclear whether Edge Light can be a real substitute for a decent ring light purchased on Amazon or even a small lamp that clips to the top of your screen. That said, it looks like it will brighten up your video conferencing smiley face enough to ensure you’re heard. And seen.
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