Rumor: Apple to adopt micro-LED displays for Apple Watch units in second half of 2017

Apple may opt for micro-LED displays come the second half of 2017.

Sources within the supply chain have suggested that that the much-rumored Apple Watch 2 lineup expected to debut in the second half of 2016 will continue to have OLED displays, with the move towards micro-LED panels liking occurring in tandem with the tentatively named Apple Watch 3.

Micro-LED displays can be thinner and lighter and allow for improved color gamut, increased brightness, and higher resolutions. The panels do not require backlighting like traditional LCD displays, but they can be difficult and expensive to mass produce. Micro LEDs range in size from 1-micron to 100-micron.

Earlier this year, the mighty Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities suggested that the Apple Watch 2 will mainly feature internal improvements while more substantial changes would arrive in a third-gen Apple Watch due in 2017.

Apple acquired micro-LED display maker LuxVue Technology in 2014, and one of the company’s investors at the time said it had “a technical breakthrough in displays.” LuxVue holds multiple micro-LED-related patents and, in 2013, it raised $25.2 million in funding to pursue the technology.

Apple also opened a facility in northern Taiwan last year, where it is believed to be focusing on micro-LED technology.

As always, stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

Via MacRumors and DigiTimes