Apple may be preparing to design upcoming products with OLED panels manufactured by Samsung, according to NotebookCheck (via The Elec).
Devices expected to get the panels range from iPads to MacBooks to foldable laptops, the latter of which the brand has not yet introduced, in addition to its Apple Studio Display.
UBI Research analysts at a recent seminar in Seoul had the most details about the future Studio Display model, claiming that Samsung is currently developing 27-inch QD-OLED (Quantum Dot OLED) panels in its A5 manufacturing line. Samsung’s “main customer is expected to be Apple,” according to analysts.
The relationship would likely continue exclusively thereafter, giving Apple a big upper hand over its competitors.
Notably, there have been several suggestions about what display components the next Apple Studio monitor will use. Reports in October suggested that a 27-inch Apple mini-LED external display had been delayed until 2023 due to high-cost concerns. However, analysts expect the OLED Apple Studio display might release sometime in 2024.
If current reports are accurate, this would be Apple’s first monitor with an OLED screen. Prior monitors, including the original Studio Display and the Pro Display XDR use conventional IPS screen technology. We’ve seen QD-OLED monitors, of course, such as the Alienware 34 QD-OLED, but they’ve so far been limited to large, curved gaming monitors.
The reports conclude that Apple might collaborate with both Samsung and LG for its first OLED iPad in 2024, using panels made with a gen 8 substrate. These panels are typically larger and last longer than those used on smartphones, the publication added.
Lastly, Apple is expected to begin introducing MacBooks with these OLED panels in 2025. Analysts also claim Samsung and LG hope that their display sectors will have new OLED technologies perfected and commercialized by 2025, so they can benefit from implementing them into upcoming Apple devices.
Apple also has a future goal of introducing laptops with foldable display panels. Reports have suggested that Apple has a “foldable notebook” with a 20-inch display in its release pipeline for the 2026 or 2027 time frame.
