Apple Reportedly Planning to Launch iMac With OLED Display

[MacRumors]

Apple is preparing to launch an iMac featuring an OLED panel with higher brightness, according to ZDNet Korea.

Apple has apparently requested that Samsung Display, LG Display, and other suppliers produce 24-inch OLED panel samples suitable for a future iMac model using their mass-production facilities. This would be the biggest ever OLED display offered on an Apple device.

Specifically, Apple asked suppliers for 24-inch OLED panels with 600 nits of brightness and around 218 pixels-per-inch (PPI). By comparison, the current iMac features a 24-inch LCD display with 500 nits of brightness and 218 PPI.

Samsung Display is expected to respond first, planning to produce 220 PPI samples on its large-format Quantum Dot OLED (QD-OLED) production lines and ship them to Apple in the second half of 2026. This would be a considerable step up from the 160 PPI QD-OLED panels it currently mass-produces for monitors. SEMES announced earlier this month that it had shipped inkjet printing equipment to Samsung capable of supporting the higher pixel density.

LG Display's samples are expected to follow those of Samsung, and may not be as bright due to using color filters rather than a quantum dot color conversion layer. Instead of using its existing 4-stack W-OLED panels, the company reportedly plans to compete using a still-in-development 5-stack design that adds a green layer for better brightness. LG Display is also developing "eLEAP" technology, referred to internally as "fLEAP," which eliminates the need for Fine Metal Masks (FMM), for a selection of future Apple device displays, including the iMac and MacBook.

Apple purportedly wants to launch the OLED iMac in 2029 or 2030. For now, the iMac is due an upgrade to the M5 chip. Apple last refreshed the machine with the M4 chip and a 12MP Center Stage camera in October 2024.

Article Link: Apple Reportedly Planning to Launch iMac With OLED Display

 

[gpat]

Sticking with 24" is just annoying.

 

[lenningj]

atleast push the display to 25.6" the minimum -_-

 

[decimortis]

24" MacBook Pro confirmed.

 

[gsmornot]

Still waiting for the return of 27" (or larger).

 

[Spock]

Still waiting for the return of 27" (or larger).

I’m afraid you will be waiting a while, Apple wants you to buy a Mac mini or Mac Studio with a Studio Display. I don’t think the iMac will ever be a prosumer device again.

 

[iMac The Knife]

Yeah, we've heard a similar song before...

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

It's mind-boggling it takes Apple 3-4 years to incorporate into a new iMac, what is a common display technology in the industry everywhere BUT Apple.

 

[MayaUser]

sticking to an 24" and not even the M Pro SoC....

 

[ItchyRat2160]

Apple requesting absolute Mid specs in 2026 just shows they don't give a **** about innovating. OLED 24" 600nits is just who cares. Same with the Studio Displays. Mid tech at sky high prices.

 

[maverick100]

24" total waste!!!!

 

[WarmWinterHat]

24" is a good office size, but the only businesses I've seen using iMacs is my Dentist's office, and some random furniture store.

 

[Billy_Bob]

24" MacBook Pro confirmed.

...or maybe a 6" quad-fold iPhone? At least the iMac is guaranteed to have no visible crease!

 

[spritle]

Apple Reportedly Planning to Launch iMac With Display Technology That’s Been Industry-Standard for Several Years at Some Point in the Next Few Years

 

[zedsdead]

Apple used to lead the business in large screen desktop monitors, and now they are stagnant, outdated or insanely expensive.

 

[Kriss_De_Valnor]

Sod iMac, I want a MacBook Pro with a beautiful OLED/Tandem OLED screen.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

It's mind-boggling it takes Apple 3-4 years to incorporate into a new iMac, what is a common display technology in the industry everywhere BUT Apple.

“Apple Reportedly Planning to Launch iMac With Display Technology That’s Been Industry-Standard for Several Years at Some Point in the Next Few Years”

Well yes and no.
As the article says:

Samsung Display is expected to respond first, planning to produce 220 PPI samples on its large-format Quantum Dot OLED (QD-OLED) production lines and ship them to Apple in the second half of 2026. This would be a considerable step up from the 160 PPI QD-OLED panels it currently mass-produces for monitors. SEMES announced earlier this month that it had shipped inkjet printing equipment to Samsung capable of supporting the higher pixel density.

LG Display's samples are expected to follow those of Samsung, and may not be as bright due to using color filters rather than a quantum dot color conversion layer. Instead of using its existing 4-stack W-OLED panels, the company reportedly plans to compete using a still-in-development 5-stack design that adds a green layer for better brightness. LG Display is also developing "eLEAP" technology, referred to internally as "fLEAP," which eliminates the need for Fine Metal Masks (FMM), for a selection of future Apple device displays, including the iMac and MacBook.

So like the article says, not exactly industry standard.
Same went for when Apple added OLED to the iPhone and (especially) the iPad Pro, yes, of course there had been OLED tablets for 15 years at that point, but none in the massive 10,000,000+ quantities that Apple requires, none with tandem OLED, none with retina resolution, 1600 Nit peak brightness, etc etc.

 

[cicalinarrot]

Daily reminder: don't fall for this. Don't buy iMacs in general.
It's gonna be a great display on a great computer at a great price.
Bound together forever so that when one becomes outdated or broken, the other one will be gone too.
It looks really good but please, resist that aesthetic urge and get a Mac Mini and a third party display instead.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

Well yes and no.
As the article says:


So like the article says, not exactly industry standard.
Same went for when Apple added OLED to the iPhone and (especially) the iPad Pro, yes, of course there had been OLED tablets for 15 years at that point, but none in the massive 10,000,000+ quantities that Apple requires, none with tandem OLED, none with retina resolution, 1600 Nit peak brightness, etc etc.

That's no excuse for taking 3-4 years to do it when Samsung is giving Apple 220ppi samples later this year. And, a 220PPI display is about 4.5K. Apple could have gone standard 4K and most people buying a 24" iMac would think it's beautiful and wouldn't know the difference. Instead, as always, they choose the harder path of demanding 4.5K displays.

It's always something with Apple. In the meantime, I enjoy my 32" 4K QD-OLED every single day and it's stunning.

 

[Ctrlos]

I don't care about the display size so long as they make it as thin as the iPad Pro.

 

[jtrenthacker]

Should already be a 32" option at this point. OLED or not.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I think somebody maybe misspelled iPad mini?

😁

 

[david_n_n]

Groovy! Darken those bezels or flop.

 

[ChrisMac47]

Daily reminder: don't fall for this. Don't buy iMacs in general.
It's gonna be a great display on a great computer at a great price.
Bound together forever so that when one becomes outdated or broken, the other one will be gone too.
It looks really good but please, resist that aesthetic urge and get a Mac Mini and a third party display instead.

Yes, I've just fallen victim of the 2021 M1 iMac screen "lines" fault (I'm not alone of course, I join thousands of others) ... if one thing fails you are faced either with a very expensive repair (over $1000 here at an official Apple repair centre and only 90-day warranty!) or junking the whole machine.

A Mac Mini will be my next machine, not only cheaper but so much more flexible and future-proof.

 

[benwiggy]

I've got the 600-nit Studio Display, and 50% Brightness is about as much as my eyeballs can bear. What's the use case for representing things brighter than any real-world objects?