Apple is no longer working on Apple Watch models with a homemade micro-LED screen. Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman reports this based on conversations with insiders. The development of the screens would have proven to be too expensive and complex.
Apple recently disbanded the internal team working on its own microLED displays, writes Mark Gurman. The displays would be too expensive to develop in large quantities due to the complexity of the underlying technology, which uses individual inorganic LEDs for each individual pixel. Although the design and manufacturing of the screens took place in-house at Apple, the mass production of that technology required collaboration with multiple external parties, the journalist said. According to Gurman, the decision to stop developing these screens will likely lead to the layoff of “a few dozen” employees.
The Bloomberg journalist claims that these screens were first intended to be used in high-end Apple Watch models, replacing their OLED screens. The displays should then also be used for other products, such as iPhones and Macs. Gurman says the company still plans to eventually add microLED displays to products other than Apple Watches. The tech giant is said to be looking for ways to simplify the production process. According to the journalist's sources, it will probably take some time before development is resumed.
In 2018, Gurman first reported that Apple was planning to use its own microLED screens in mobile devices. With this, the company would like to reduce its dependence on suppliers such as Samsung and LG. Because microLED screens provide each pixel with a small LED, these displays have a higher brightness than OLED panels.
It was reportedly the intention that the first Apple Watches with such a screen would be released in 2020. In January 2023, Gurman wrote that the release plans had been postponed to the end of 2024. Later, The Elec reported that Apple has again postponed the watches due to production problems, this time to 2026.
Apple decides to stop development of microLED screens, came about the same time, according to Gurman, that he decided to scrap his plans to build a self-driving car. The company had been working on its own EV since 2014 and is said to have invested more than 10 billion dollars in the project.
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