Apple AR / VR equipment Micro OLED panel will be supplied by Samsung display

Apple has asked Samsung Display to develop Micro OLED panels to diversify supply ahead of next year's AR/VR headset launch, a new report says.

According to The Elec, Samsung Display has received requests from several customers to start developing Micro displays, including Apple, Meta and its parent company Samsung.

Samsung Display has previously been reluctant to develop these panels because of their expected low profitability, but with multiple companies poised to launch competing products, Micro LED appears to be a key technology for the emerging AR/VR device market.

Micro OLED displays are built directly onto a chip wafer rather than a glass substrate, resulting in thinner, smaller and more energy-efficient displays. Micro OLED supports pixel sizes in the 4 to 20 micron range compared to the 40 to 300 micron range of standard OLED panels and has a faster microsecond response time, making it ideal for AR / VR applications.

Sony is expected to supply Apple with the display modules used, and today's report says LG Display will also supply Micro LED panels to Apple next year.

Samsung Display will reportedly provide a traditional OLED panel for the device, perhaps for peripheral vision that can accept lower resolutions. Samsung Display will then try to provide Micro OLED panels for second-generation devices.

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said Apple's first headset is expected to be unveiled at a special event in January 2023, while a successor device, likely with a higher-end configuration and new affordable options, is expected to launch in 2025.