Apple Invests $330 Million in Taiwan for MicroLED Tech
By China LCD supplierJune 3rd, 2020172 views
Apple plans to invest $330 million to build a plant in Taiwan, where the development of, Micro LED displays will be a "top priority". The new Taiwan plant will produce LED and Micro LED displays for future iPhone, iPad, MacBooks and other devices. According to (CENS), a Taiwanese procurement service, Apple's partners are expected to be EPISTAR, a maker of LED, and AUO, a maker of LCD panels.
The new plant will be located at the Longtan branch of the Hsinchu Science and Technology Park, and Apple's total investment is expected to be NT $10 billion (US $334 million). The new plant will be an expansion of Apple's operations in the region, and the company is said to have sent a development team to Taiwan to develop the project. Apple has long expected to use the Mini-LED and Micro LED, in a range of products, including the current 2020 Apple Watch, and future models of the 16-inch MacBook Pro.
The report highlights the advantages of Mini-LED and Micro LED screens over LCD and OLED displays, including thinner and more energy efficient. For example, the power consumption of the, Micro LED screen is only 1/10 of that of the LCD display screen, and the color saturation is close to OLED.
Like OLED, micro-LED is self-luminous. However, compared with OLED, micro-LED can support higher brightness, higher dynamic range, wider color gamut, faster update speed, wider visual angle, and lower power consumption, which are all qualities that Apple hopes to achieve.
However, due to the difficulty of developing Micro LED technology, early design will rely on Mini-LED, which is between traditional LED and Micro LED technology, although Apple still regards Micro LED technology as a "top priority".
Analysts say Apple has six mini-LED products under development and is expected to be unveiled in 2020 and 2021. Apple is expected to make its debut in the high-end 12.9-inch iPad Pro, 27-inch iMac Pro, 14.1-inch MacBook Pro, 16-inch MacBook Pro, 10.2-inch iPad and 7.9-inch iPad mini in the fall.
With the exception of the iMac Pro and the 7.9inch iPad mini expected in the fourth quarter of 2020, there is no mention of the launch date of the other devices, and there are reports that Apple will launch the 7.9inch iPad mini in 2020.
Apple reportedly began testing a prototype Apple Watch with a Micro LED display in 2017. Although there are rumors that the Apple Watch with Micro LED display could be launched as early as 2020, Twitter whistleblower @ L0vetodream poured cold water on that prediction on Sunday, saying that this year's Apple Watch Series 6 will have the same OLED display as previous models.