Apple's Custom MicroLED Displays Likely Heading to iPhone, iPad, and Mac After Apple Watch Ultra

[enterthemerdaverse]

If you mean 1Hz... I doubt that will help against eventual burn-in.

Some say burn-in can be reduced by using a much less brighter setting. I'm not sure that would have helped in my case because my burn in is visibly from watching too many Instagram cooking videos and obviously I'm not going to use a low brightness to watch them.

 

[FlyingDutch]

Just curious can you explain why? To me it seems like a great technology. Not that Im against alternatives either. What exactly leaves you to not like OLED? I mean given equal price it is definitely better than normal LCD thus why it developed in the first place. Now we have something better coming which is never a bad thing, but how is OLED existing for a time a "bad thing"?

While we are addressing it. How do you expect microLED to be any better/different than oLED. From complete ignorant standpoint they seem to be deeply related technologies? I am curious to know how your dislike of OLED will not translate the same into MicroLED? No sarcasm I am interested to know your thoughts here.

The organic nature of OLED panels. I don’t like it. Burn in is just one point, not so relevant on a phone (but you can find some complaints also here), but the OLED display is degrading the moment you turn it on, and every subpixel is degrading at a different pace (depending on the color). It has some advantages, especially regarding the blacks, but I’m looking forward to something less prone to degradation

 

[Kierkegaarden]

If I remember correctly, this has taken longer to develop because yields are much lower than other displays, and I’m sure the pandemic delayed the progress of this.

 

[FlyingDutch]

And you are the only one.

Clearly not.

 

[FlyingDutch]

If I remember correctly, this has taken longer to develop because yields are much lower than other displays, and I’m sure the pandemic delayed the progress of this.

Correct. At this point yields are reportedly quite low… I don’t know if Apple is confident to have it improved by 2025 ready for mass production. Apple Watch could be a test bench.

 

[BorisDG]

Some say burn-in can be reduced by using a much less brighter setting. I'm not sure that would have helped in my case because my burn in is visibly from watching too many Instagram cooking videos and obviously I'm not going to use a low brightness to watch them.

Brightness is a factor, because also the heat of the display is increasing. The organic material is sensitive to heat. That's why like I said it's known "Hard OLED" has longer life-span than "Soft OLED". The "Hard OLED" is on glass substrate which carries the heat away better. Meanwhile "Soft OLED" is on a flexible plastic substrate.

I think Nintendo Switch OLED is on "Hard OLED" and holds pretty well in the burn-in department.

 

[I7guy]

Because you don't watch hundreds of hours of Instagram cooking videos 😂 If you look at my burn in you will see the icons that burned in the screen are from IG.

I guess then that watching 100s of hours of IG cooking videos can create oled burn-in. Seems to me that is extraordinary usage, not ordinary usage and I also believe it's the screen brightness. OLED generally is subject to burn-in, but if you got your money's worth out of it then it's a fair trade-off.

 

[Shirasaki]

Yup the 11 pro allows "never" as a setting for auto-lock.

iPhone XS Max also allow indefinite screen on time. Basically auto-lock can be set to “never”.

 

[9594864]

“Painted on top of the glass” is the stupidest statement ever.

Of course is hilariously inaccurate. The display will look extremely similar, the most obvious difference being brighter still in the sunlight.

 

[Agent007]

Continued vertical integration. Not a huge surprise.

 

[Realityck]

After debuting in 2024's Apple Watch Ultra, Gurman expects Apple's custom microLED displays to expand to the iPhone, potentially followed by the iPad and the Mac at an even later date. He believes Apple's long-term plan is to bring microLED displays to all of its key products, but it could be a decade before it emerges in the Mac owing to the complexity of the technology at this early stage.

I wonder what’s the point? If microLED advantages are weighed against the manufacturing/machining expense compared to much cheaper displays that yield close approximations of equivalent display quality who really cares. It like the comparison on mini-Led displays used as an alternative to OLED in daylight situations on laptops. Apple will chose what gives the best bang for the buck versus display quality most of the time. As we know that OLED technology has seen a lot more evolution in the last few years because of they brought the cost down, can microLED equal that in the next few years? I really like to see what’s eventually happens between the two, but right now microLED applications are narrow in comparison.

 

[banfiz]

Micro LED was supposed to succeed mini LED and has been a long time coming, Obviously the technical issues involved have been large and OELD has preceded quicker. However the promise of mini and micro LED has been tantalising to all have followed the technology since the 1990's following TFT.

 

[Realityck]

Micro LED was supposed to succeed mini LED and has been a long time coming, Obviously the technical issues involved have been large and OELD has preceded quicker. However the promise of mini and micro LED has been tantalising to all have followed the technology since the 1990's following TFT.

There is a similar difficulty that needs to be overcome as seen with OLED emitters. It’s difficult to shrink particular light-emitting diodes without compromising their performance in microLED displays, is why most of the TV display are so huge.

From Samsung CES 2023

We don’t know the native resolution of the various microLED TV in Samsung’s lineup, but since Samsung says the 76-inch model joins its existing 110-inch microLED — which is a 4K model — it’s likely the CX is also a 4K panel, as some observers had previously predicted.

 

[zorinlynx]

This is what burn-in looks like when I show it on top of a full screen white background.

Some apps have burned their icons into the display. The iOS menu bar items and task switcher also are burned in.

This isn't Apple's fault. It's just what OLED does if your display is on a lot after more than 2 years.

How bright do you have your display? Are you one of those people who have it at maximum brightness even in a movie theater?

I just wonder because I use my 11 Pro Max heavily and have zero burn-in after over three years.

 

[BorisDG]

He said 70%.

I use default energy and lock settings except I normally have the brightness at about 70%.

 

[applefan69]

Continued vertical integration. Not a huge surprise.

Great comment. This person knows business.

Its almost as if we could predict Apple will continue this trend. Perhaps one day manufacturing their own batteries and glass?

 

[Greenmeenie]

So MicroLED is better than OLED? I thought the ultimate goal was OLED iPads. But I guess OLED ipads are a stop gap until Apple’s microLED tech is ready? Hmm 🤔

 

[BorisDG]

microLED for sure will be reserved for the top end iPads while more mainstream like Air series can go OLED.

 

[Fandroid killer]

hopefully Apple will push this forward to the whole industry
micro-Led is just next gen level and it will be with us for decades to

Apple is going to be late like always. Next year android getting it

 

[Fandroid killer]

I just wish Apple would prioritize this microLED display for the 📱 iPhone Pro lineup first since that is the blockbuster product. But I get Apple wants to test it out on ⌚️ Apple Watch first (smaller display).

It's not about prioritizing or testing. It's about capability. There is no possible way to mass produce displays the size of iphones at the scale that iphones sell. Not right now nor any time soon. Watch market is tiny as are their displays. Besides, I bet very few are willing to shell out $200-300 extra for an iPhone with a microLED display. Apple will increase prices for microLED displays

 

[Fandroid killer]

Really? Could you elaborate on what the burn in is. I've never heard that on an iPhone before.

Mini led on iPad pro is incredible. Would choose it over OLED any day. Brightness alone makes it win. Google burn in iphones on YouTube and you will find its actually a larger problem than you think

 

[Realityck]

So MicroLED is better than OLED? I thought the ultimate goal was OLED iPads. But I guess OLED ipads are a stop gap until Apple’s microLED tech is ready? Hmm 🤔

Not so long ago before Samsung announced it was abandoning LCD TV panels and going to OLED TV panels a lot of their fans prophesied that microLED was superior to OLED displays and made a big fuss about burn-in. Now look at the specs for the recent OLED displays in the iPhone 14 Pros. It’s really water under the bridge debate now.

 

[Born Again]

How much does Gurman get paid annually to make puff pieces on rumors? $120k? $150k?

 

[LD517]

I expect it with OLED anyway. If you google for images of it you see people on iPhones and Androids with it.

I see you posted you have an 11? That's curious because you keep saying OLED when the 11 uses LCD...

 

[BorisDG]

I see you posted you have an 11? That's curious because you keep saying OLED when the 11 uses LCD...

He said many times 11 Pro which is OLED.