The iPad mini and MacBook could start featuring OLED display panels in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
According to The Elec, Chinese display panel supplier BOE has begun preparing to build a production line of OLED iPad display panels. These panels will be used for the first time in an iPad model that might arrive in 2024. It is to be followed by an OLED MacBook in 2025.
Per sources close to the story, BOE is preparing to build a generation 8.6 IT OLED panel production line at its B16 factory in Sichuan Province, China. Once completed, the production line will begin manufacturing units by the end of 2024, cranking out 15,000 substrates per month. The company is apparently planning to compete against both Samsung Display and LG Display to offer OLD displays for both Apple’s iPad and MacBooks.
Samsung and LG will use a Gen 6 production line to produce Apple’s first OLED iPad. After that, both Samsung and LG will start using Gen 8.5 OLED panels for the next generation of OLED iPads. Gen 8.5 glass substrate is more economical to use than Gen 6.
BOE is also reported to be testing two-stack tandem OLD production technology on its current production line. This technique can offer OLED panels with both increased brightness and longevity, making it more suitable for iPads and MacBooks, which are often used for longer periods than smartphones.
It’s rumored that Apple could release its first OLED iPad in 2024, and previous reports have indicated that LG should supply OLED panels to Apple for its next-gen MacBooks, which would be released in 2025. This will of course depend on the success of the first-generation OLED iPad that Apple should launch in 2024.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via The Mac Observer and The Elec