By Hartley Charlton
According to The Information, Apple has spent nearly a decade investing heavily in developing its own MicroLED technology to break away from Samsung as a supplier.
Flexible OLED display for iPhone X supplied by Samsung
Development of Apple's MicroLED displays has reportedly taken much longer than expected, forcing the company to deepen its ties with Samsung before until the technology is ready. MicroLED offers better durability, efficiency, brightness, dynamic range and viewing angles than existing technologies such as OLED.
Apparently Apple planned to use MicroLED rather than OLED for the iPhone X, but its high manufacturing cost and potential for defects meant that the transition to a new display technology moved further down the pipeline. Apple is still allegedly planning to introduce its first MicroLED displays on the Apple Watch next year, with the panels likely coming from LG and Sharp rather than Samsung. The company originally planned to introduce the first Apple Watch with a MicroLED display this year, but has again struggled to bring the technology to market.
Despite the launch of the first MicroLED Apple Watch next year, Apple employees are reportedly concerned that next generation display technology will not be ready for larger devices such as the iPhone and iPad coming soon. Some future Apple products, such as the mixed reality headset and foldable iPad, will be supplied by companies such as Sony, LG, and BOE to free Samsung, but some devices, such as next year's OLED iPad and high-end iPhone models will continue to depend on Samsung for the foreseeable future.
Apple has reportedly struggled to reduce its dependence on Samsung due to its manufacturing and technological superiority, leading to an unusual relationship where Apple less power than her. compared to other suppliers who have to be content with secrecy, low quality, defects and low transparency in the production process. Samsung is said to be extremely distrustful of Apple, barring Apple engineers and security personnel from its facilities, and frequently refusing to answer questions related to its technology.
The report goes on to give numerous examples of disagreements between Apple and Samsung, such as when a Korean supplier reportedly refused to accept Apple's request to clean iPhone 14 Pro screens despite debris and residue caused by the cut-out process for Dianmik Island. Apple apparently had to do extensive testing on Samsung displays during product development in order to detect any defects or issues.
Tags: Samsung, The Information, Micro-LED[ 81 comments ]
