When in doubt, roll your own.
According to Nikkei Asia, Apple will begin mass producing its own microLED displays in order to lessen its reliance on Samsung, increase control over its supply chain, and lay the groundwork to realize its ultimate goal of bringing the technology to iPhones.
Per sources close to the story, Apple has invested at least $1 billion on microLED research and development over the past decade. Once production begins, Apple will perform the critical “mass transfer” step of the manufacturing process, which involves placing at least tens of thousands of tiny microLED chips onto substrates.
The company is said to be planning to fabricate the tiny microLED chips directly onto wafers and will partner with ams-Osram for the microLED components, LG Display for the substrates, and TSMC for 12-inch wafers. The process will reportedly be carried out at Apple’s secretive R&D facilities in the Longtan District in the northern Taiwanese city of Taoyuan.
Apple currently has R&D teams working on the units in the United States, Taiwan, and Japan, and is said to have designed not only the driver integrated circuits for the units, but some of its own production equipment to better control the mass transfer process. This will allow Apple to eventually adopt the display technology in products that traditionally use OLED panels supplied by Samsung and other suppliers.
In spite of the groundwork Apple’s already completed, microLED display production remains challenging with higher manufacturing costs, which is why Apple will start rolling out the technology with the Apple Watch Ultra before ultimately mass-producing microLED displays for iPhones. The technology allows for higher brightness, decreased power consumption, improved contrast ratio, and other benefits compared to current iPhones with OLED displays.
The updated Apple Watch Ultra with a microLED display is expected in 2025, and the first iPhone to adopt the technology is likely still several years away from launching. All four iPhone 15 models coming later this year are expected to feature OLED displays.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via MacRumors and Nikkei Asia