Apple Bolsters Supply Chain for Future Mini-LED iPad Pro and MacBook Pro Models

[CWallace]

I'm desperately waiting for the next gen 16" to come out, but fear it won't be until next Spring.

I'm surprised Apple did not upgrade to Comet Lake-H with the 5600M+HBM2 option because that should have required a new motherboard so they could have moved to Comet Lake at the same time (since that also would have required a new motherboard).

This makes me think Apple might be planning to move the 16" to Apple Silicon along with the rumored 14.1" model and that could not happen until late this year at the earliest because they require macOS 11 (Big Sur). If Apple is also waiting for MiniLED displays for both models, that too would push back EIS.

i think they do mini led first but arm at the same time probably unlikely. Still the question is does the 14" get it first or do we get the iMac remodel.

I believe the ~24" Apple Silicon iMac is ready, it just needs to wait until macOS 11 is ready later this year. I am inclined to believe it will ship first because I have not seen any rumors about it going to MiniLED (that appears to be an iMac Pro refresh-only option per Kuo) and the MiniLED Mac portables that were originally rumored for Late 2020 now seem to be hedging into early 2021.

 

[ph001bi]

I’m guessing that this new display tech will be accompanied by a price increase... I also wonder if they will hold this tech for the MacBook until the ARM machines are ready.

MSI offers a laptop using mini-led and there is no noticeable price difference. TCL offers a mini-led TV and there is no noticeable price difference with other techs either.
I don't think, we'll see any price difference between current intel laptop with LED and next year ARM laptop with MiniLed.
We'll just get more for our money.

 

[Spock]

MSI offers a laptop using mini-led and there is no noticeable price difference. TCL offers a mini-led TV and there is no noticeable price difference with other techs either.
I don't think, we'll see any price difference between current intel laptop with LED and next year ARM laptop with MiniLed.
We'll just get more for our money.

But we aren’t talking about TCL or MSI, this is Apple, they will charge a premium for the new tech.

 

[Ryan David Mullins]

Most importantly, and I’m really hitting on the BIG topics here, but where can I get that Macbook Pro wallpaper featured in the post????

 

[deannnnn]

Why would they use Mini-LED over OLED? Cost? Isn't OLED better than Mini-LED or am I misunderstanding?

 

[CWallace]

Why would they use Mini-LED over OLED? Cost? Isn't OLED better than Mini-LED or am I misunderstanding?

OLED is more expensive than MiniLED. OLED also is more susceptible to image retention which can be an issue considering how many static elements on a Mac display (like the Dock) that are illuminated for long periods of time. MiniLED is also more power-efficient than OLED so that would improve battery life of portables.

 

[Moyapilot]

Hmm. I’m looking forward to the release of the 12.9 MiniLED, although I won’t be buying the first iteration as I’ve been burned before (10.5 Pro glowing spot on screen).

But I’m dissapointed with the 10,000 individual LEDs if that is indeed true. LG’s 4K OLEDs for example have 8.3 Million unique OLED pixels. Is it just me, or does this just seem more like a supercharged version of “Full-Array backlighting”?

How are they able to approach the contrast and perfect blacks using just 10,000 modulating LEDs?

 

[CWallace]

But I’m dissapointed with the 10,000 individual LEDs if that is indeed true. LG’s 4K OLEDs for example have 8.3 Million unique OLED pixels. Is it just me, or does this just seem more like a supercharged version of “Full-Array backlighting”? How are they able to approach the contrast and perfect blacks using just 10,000 modulating LEDs?

MiniLED is essentially a better version of "full-array backlighting" and as such it cannot match the Black Level or contrast of an OLED, but MiniLED gets significantly closer than plain vanilla LED displays and it has the benefits of offering better brightness and no risk of image "burn in".

 

[jterp7]

If youve ever compared the ipad pro screens to any of the oled phones there is a massive difference in contrast. Anything with dark scenes or HDR is very noticeable. This is simply meant to bridge the gap until microled is viable to be mass produced. If the pro display is any indication is should be a massive improvement. Of the reviews out there, worst case sdr for the xdr was 12460:1 vs ipad pro 11 measured at 1772:1 While not infinite as is the case with oled, a minimum 7x improvement is nothing to sneeze at (assuming the minileds match the xdr in brightness and do 1000nits)

 

[Spungoflex]

Am I the only one who doesn’t want a larger MacBook Pro? Keep the screen size the same. Reduce bezels if you want and make the footprint even smaller (Dell managed that).

 

[HiRez]

10,000 LEDs is still a lot of pixels per LED. It's unlikely to match OLED at television sizes but perhaps for a laptop it would work well, I'm holding off on upgrading MacBook Pro for larger, MicroLED screens, and hopefully ARM (timeline and performance remains to be seen but the fan noise on Intel laptops drives me nuts).

 

[pearvsapple]

They’re using Mini LED-LCD junk because nobody can supply them with OLED at those unpopular screen sizes.

 

[macduke]

My next computer will be one of these ARM, Mini LED MacBook Pros. I’m excited to see what kind of GPU they’ll be able to put into the 14” model, which historically as the 13” model has used integrated Intel garbage. 14.1” should be a bigger noticeable jump for two reasons: it’s 0.8” bigger vs 0.6” bigger for the 16” MacBook Pro, and relative to the smaller screen size it will feel even bigger. Can’t wait!

 

[Frantisekj]

It is not purely to article topis but I was wondering what is that power consumption advantage of mini LED. I searched web like crazy but have not found single article, example, where anyone would give at least rough numbers of power consumption compare to other technologies. Does anyone has a clue.

 

[CWallace]

It is not purely to article topis but I was wondering what is that power consumption advantage of mini LED. I searched web like crazy but have not found single article, example, where anyone would give at least rough numbers of power consumption compare to other technologies. Does anyone has a clue.

I cannot give exact figures (because I haven't seen them), but MiniLED is said to consume less power than OLED per many articles on the two I have read.

 

[vionc]

God Im looking forward to that new 14" MacBook Pro so much. Still rocking a late 2011 13", which has never let me down so far.

My Wishlist for the 14":
- smaller bezels with rounded corners, like the iPad Pro
- Face ID
- mini LED screen

Im gonna spec that one to the max, Im drooling already ...

 

[semka]

I am not sure I like all this. I am scared about the move away from Intel, I am very uncomfortable about mini-LEDs, as those can barely compete with OLEDs in image quality and at the prices Apple is charging they should go with micro-LEDs instead. Too many changes made too fast are never a good thing.

 

[ph001bi]

I am not sure I like all this. I am scared about the move away from Intel, I am very uncomfortable about mini-LEDs, as those can barely compete with OLEDs in image quality and at the prices Apple is charging they should go with micro-LEDs instead. Too many changes made too fast are never a good thing.

Change is always destabilising but it's more often than not for the better. Mini-led actually offers better brightness (HDR1000 can be achieved) than OLED and allows for multiple zones. You might want to check the MSI 17 inch laptop which received very good reviews.
Micro-led won't be ready for mass production for a while as the standard requires LEDs to be smaller than 75 microns. We might see the technology in the Apple Watch around 2022 but it'd be at least 2024 before we see it in a laptop.

 

[CWallace]

I am not sure I like all this. I am scared about the move away from Intel, I am very uncomfortable about mini-LEDs, as those can barely compete with OLEDs in image quality and at the prices Apple is charging they should go with micro-LEDs instead. Too many changes made too fast are never a good thing.

Micro-LED is still not really ready for general consumer display use and in terms of pricing they make OLED look free in comparison. Samsung's "The Wall" panels are ~32x18 inches and are 960x540 pixels with an average price of $20,000 each. So creating a 4K display using them would require 16 panels at around $200,000 - not including installation.