Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple is working to design its in-house MicroLED displays for use in devices such as the iPhone and Apple Watch. After nearly five years of planning and development, the screens could start appearing on devices early next year, the report said.
Currently, Apple uses displays designed and manufactured by various vendors. Samsung OLED panels for iPhone 14s There are reports that it is manufactured by LG and BOE . According to Gurman, Apple may have other companies make its displays, but it will use Apple’s designs and specifications rather than those of other companies.
It ‘s similar to the company using its own chip designs in laptops and desktops, and it should be able to get big performance and battery life benefits, edging out Intel. While the actual work of creating these processors falls to TSMC , Apple has full control over the design.
Apple is likely to ship its MicroLED screens first in the Apple Watch, which is expected to replace the OLED displays they currently have in place as early as 2024, according to the report. One of the challenges with MicroLED is that making it small can be an ambitious goal. Currently, the only real commercial products using the technology are Samsung’s large TVs , such as The Wall. But Apple has reportedly been planning this move for a long time.
In 2018 , Bloomberg reported that the company was quietly developing in-house screen tech specifically for the Watch, and in 2014 it bought a microLED startup called LuxView . We heard last year that the company was working on ultra-thin micro OLED and MicroLED displays for its AR headset .
It looks like Apple is trying to do something similar with its in-house chip efforts. It starts small with the technology, but it looks like it’s made to scale.
With the Watch, It will start with a lowercase letter and shape. While the Apple Watch is selling well, not at the level of the iPhone, it will take time to iron out the wrinkles with its display designs before leading to its flagship project. According to Bloomberg, it will be “years” before Apple’s displays make it to the iPhone.
Gurman also suggested that the Apple Watch might move to 2025 instead of 2024, similar to an earlier rumor that plans to install MicroLEDs on the Apple Watch .