Bloomberg: Apple wants to use its own microLED screens in devices from 2024

Apple plans to use its own microLED screens in mobile devices from 2024. Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman reports this based on his own sources. Apple wants to become less dependent on suppliers such as Samsung and LG.

Apple would like to provide its most high-end Apple Watch models with their own screen by the end of 2024, writes Gurman, which is known for its good resources within Apple. Apple’s most expensive smartwatches would therefore have a microLED display next year, where they currently have an OLED panel. However, sources report to Gurman that the release of this could be pushed back a year. The tech giant also plans to bring home-made microLED screens to other devices, including iPhones, later, though Bloomberg says that could be years away.

Apple is currently producing a small number of displays for testing purposes. The company does that in its own 7,560-square-foot factory near its headquarters in Cupertino, California, according to Gurman. The company developed the screens itself and worked out its own production process, although mass production is probably outsourced to an external supplier.

The tech giant is said to have been going for years; Gurman first wrote in 2018 that the company wants to make its own microLED screens. The company took over in 2014 microled start-up LuxVue left. The display project is led by Wei Chen, who runs the display group within Apple’s hardware division. Apple is said to have started testing its microLED screens on a new version of the Apple Watch Ultra. The microLED screen in question should offer higher brightness, better color reproduction and better viewing angles compared to the OLED screen in the current Apple Watch Ultra.

With its own screens, the company wants to become less dependent on the designs of other companies. The company’s current screens are produced by suppliers such as Samsung and LG. With its own screens, the company would have more control over the design and features of its products. For the same reason, Apple has been working for some time to design important components itself as much as possible. The manufacturer previously replaced the Intel CPUs in its Mac products with its own chip designs and is also reportedly planning to use its own Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chips in its iPhones from 2025.

The Apple Watch Ultra, which currently has an OLED screen