LG developing ultrathin 8-gen OLED displays for Apple
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LG is working on hybrid OLED panels for future Apple devices, with both a rigid glass substrate, and a flexible thin-film encapsulation layer. This would allow it to achieve 0.2mm ultrathin glass layer that is more than two times thinner than the typical 0.5mm glass substrates.
Apparently, the hybrid rigid-flexible panels are scheduled for release together with LG's 8th-gen OLED technology, reports The Elec, which means that we won't see the new encapsulation paradigm on next year's OLED iPad Pro models.
Apple is reportedly planning its first OLED iPad Pro for а release then, too, but it will use the current, 6th-gen OLED panels made by Samsung and LG. The 8th-gen factories will be able to churn out 15,000 2200 x 2500mm sheets per month, achieving greater economies of scale, as the current 6th-gen production lines are making much smaller, 1500 x 1850mm sheets that are mostly used to cut phone and tablet screens from.
LG has been testing Gen 8.5 OLED display deposition technology for a while, Korean media has reported, for future use in Apple's MacBooks and iPads. As mentioned, those Gen 8.5 substrates are larger than the current Gen 6 ones, so those bigger MacBook panels can be cut from them while achieving economies of scale.
Since the tentative release date of the first OLED MacBook is said to be in 2025, the hybrid rigid-flexible OLED tech that LG is now working on is more likely to be for them, rather than for iPads which may or may not get it at a later date.
Apple also wants that LG and Samsung provide it with dual-stack OLED panels that have increased longevity and brightness - features that will come in handy on laptops and professional tablets - but only LG is so far able to produce larger dual-stack screens, mainly for automotive purposes.
It, together with Samsung, will be providing the screens for the first OLED iPads, which will be made on the Gen 6 lines at first, but for the next OLED iPad Pro generations LG apparently has other display tricks up its sleeves.
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