The Ultimate Display Technology Used by Apple: From LCD to OLED to Mini LED

Recently, Malcolm Owen, an author from AI (Artificial Intelligence website), published an article about LCD, OLED, Mini LED, and Micro LED technologies. In the article, he introduces these four technologies and expresses anticipation for Micro LED, which is expected to replace LCD and OLED. These technologies are related to Apple’s current or future products.

Progress in display technology has been slow, and it seems to take decades for the industry to upgrade. For example, cathode ray tube (CRT) screens existed for a long time before LCD appeared, but it was only gradually replaced when lightweight LCD screens became affordable; OLED screens appeared in the 1990s but only gained widespread use in recent years.

Currently, Apple has brought Mini LED to the iPad Pro and is also researching Micro LED screens.

Both technologies are interesting, each with its unique advantages. Especially Micro LED, which will bring fundamental changes to device design, production, and display effects.

To fully understand these two technologies, we first need to look at other mainstream display technologies.

1. Traditional, Low-Cost Screen Solution, LCD

LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) is the earliest display technology and has been used on screens for decades. LCD is most commonly used in laptops and can also be seen in tablets, smartphones, and other mobile devices.

When an LCD screen is powered, the properties of the liquid crystal change, affecting the light passing through the liquid crystal material, thus creating an image on the screen. For example, when powering a calculator, the current makes some liquid crystal materials transparent, some opaque, and others remain translucent, ultimately displaying numbers on the screen. When there are more red, yellow, and blue pixels on a screen, it can display different colors.

LCD provides manufacturers with a cheap, low-cost, and reliable screen. Over the years, it has been the main technology used in Apple’s product screens.

2. OLED: My Pixels Light Up Themselves

After LCD screens, the next important display technology is OLED, or Organic Light Emitting Diode Display. LCD screens rely on LED backlight modules for illumination, while OLED screens use self-emitting pixels to actively emit light.

LCD screens typically require all LEDs in the backlight module to be on, while OLED imaging only needs to light up the pixels it requires, giving OLED a significant energy-saving potential. In terms of display, due to the constant presence of backlight, LCD screens cannot display true black. Therefore, in terms of contrast, OLED screens have a slight edge.

Although OLED screens have advantages such as clear black and white, vivid colors, thinness, and wide viewing angles, they also have disadvantages such as relatively high production costs and vulnerability to dust and water contamination during production. OLED technology is not only used in tablets and smartphones; for many years, there have been rumors that Apple will use OLED in MacBook Pro. However, this has not yet been realized. Still, Apple has widely used OLED screens in the iPhone and Apple Watch since the iPhone X.

Industry insiders believe Apple will use OLED instead of LCD in future iPad Pro models, which will make the tablet thinner and have a higher contrast. However, tablets usually have a long lifespan, and extended use can lead to OLED panel aging or brightness decline.

3. Mini LED Used in the Latest iPad Pro

Although the appeal of LCD is not as strong as OLED, Mini LED technology has given LCD a boost. Mini LED is essentially LCD, but it has better backlighting, providing display effects similar to OLED.

Clearly, Mini LED has a higher production cost than LCD, but it is still cheaper than OLED. Technically, Mini LED is relatively mature, making it an ideal choice for Apple devices.

Currently, Apple has embraced Mini LED. The 2021 12.9-inch iPad Pro uses 10,000 small LEDs as backlight. Across the entire backlight area, it has over 2,500 dimming zones, allowing for very fine brightness and contrast across the screen.

With the successful application of Mini LED in the iPad Pro, Apple is likely to apply Mini LED technology to other products, such as the MacBook Pro. Compared to OLED, upgrading displays with Mini LED will lower production costs, extend screen lifespan, and provide excellent display effects.

As this technology has just begun commercialization, Mini LED is not yet technically mature, and the mold costs are quite high. Terry Gou believes that introducing manufacturers such as Sanan Optoelectronics, Osram, and Seoul Semiconductor can significantly reduce production costs.

Terry Gou estimates that by 2021, the cost of Apple’s Mini LED will decrease to 50% of the initial cost, and then drop to 35% in 2022.

4. Micro LED, 30 Times Brighter than OLED

Building on Mini LED technology is Micro LED. Very similar to Mini LED, Micro LED uses smaller micron-sized LEDs. Because it does not use backlighting, Micro LED is very different from LCD and OLED.

Each Micro LED can emit red, green, and blue light, and by laying out enough Micro LEDs, a display screen can be created. It is similar to the giant screens in stadiums, where each part of the giant screen is made up of a group of LEDs. Micro LED displays operate on the same principle, just on a much smaller scale. Compared to OLED, Micro LED can display images up to 30 times brighter while using less power.

Micro LED has many advantages that OLED lacks. Due to its production process being less susceptible to water and air contamination, it has a higher yield and longer lifespan. When used in flexible or foldable screens, Micro LED panels are less prone to cracking or damage than OLED panels. The downside is that the production cost of Micro LED is extremely high before the technology matures.

5. Apple’s Ultimate Ambition, Micro LED

Currently, Apple has invested heavily in developing Micro LED. In May 2014, Apple acquired LuxVue, a company specializing in Micro LED, which holds several patents applicable to Apple devices.

In March 2018, reports indicated that Apple was operating a department dedicated to Micro LED research. This department, covering 62,000 square feet, is only a 15-minute drive from Apple’s headquarters, with 300 engineers engaged in Micro LED research.

In May 2020, Apple invested $334 million in a factory in northern Taiwan, which will be used to produce Mini LED and Micro LED display panels. Additionally, Apple has also obtained a patent related to Micro LED production, which can improve the reliability and quality of displays.

Conclusion: The Long Road Ahead for Micro LED

After achieving great success with devices using LCD, OLED, and Mini LED screens, Apple continues its journey of screen upgrades. In the future, Apple is likely to make significant breakthroughs in Micro LED, which will provide consumers with higher-quality consumer electronics products.

Unlike LCD, OLED, or Mini LED, Apple devices still have a long way to go before achieving perfection with Micro LED.

Source: Entering Zhongguancun

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