Bottom line: Apple has adopted Mini LED backlighting in its high-end IT products, including iPad Pro and MacBook Pro models. Apple, meanwhile, is considering using OLED displays in its next high-end IT models.
Oleds are estimated to be much cheaper to manufacture than Mini leds. However, the cost gap is expected to narrow as display panel sizes increase.
Apple is considering OLED for the next generation of high-end IT displays
With the new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, mini LED-backlit LIQUID crystal displays (LCDS) are finally being used in most of Apple's high-end IT products. The Mini LED backlit LCD is capable of HDR (high dynamic range) dynamic image manipulation and is considered to be much more reliable than OLED. And the manufacturing capacity of large-size OLED panels is not as full as that of LCD panels.
However, many industry experts still believe that Apple may not give up on the development of IT OLED display panels and is still considering OLED for its next high-end IT models, as OLED has a strong advantage over Mini LED backlight in its ultra-thin thickness. To enhance its brightness and reliability, an RGB Tandem structure is being developed. In order to mass produce large-sized IT display panels, some OLED manufacturers are planning to invest in eight-generation OLED plants.
Oleds are much cheaper to manufacture than Mini leds
Manufacturing costs will be another advantage for OLeds compared to Mini LED backlights. Figure 1 shows the cost comparison between the normal (traditional) LCD, OLED, and Mini LED-backlit LCD for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro tablet. Mini LED-backlit LCDS are estimated to be much more expensive to manufacture than regular LCDS and OLeds -- about three times as expensive as LCDS and twice as expensive as OLeds.
Source: Omdia
The MacBook's cost gap narrowed
The 16.2-inch MacBook display panel has a similarly high cost to make. As shown in Figure 2, the manufacturing cost of a 16.2-inch Mini LED backlit LCD is also estimated to be much higher than that of a normal LCD, about 3 times. However, the gap with an equivalent OLED panel is estimated to be only 1.2 times, much smaller than the gap with a tablet display panel.
The manufacturing cost of OLED panels basically depends on their size. The 16.2-inch panel is 50 percent larger than the 12.9-inch panel, so its manufacturing cost increases significantly. However, for the Mini LED backlit LCD, the situation is different. Module material accounts for the largest part of the total manufacturing cost of mini LED backlit LCD, but it is not proportional to the panel size.
At the same time, LED chips are the main component of module materials, and the total number of LED chips plays a key role in the cost estimation of Mini LED backlit LCD manufacturing. A 16.2-inch Mini LED backlight has 10,240 LED chips, almost the same as a 12.9-inch Mini LED backlight, which has 10,384 chips. As a result, the manufacturing cost difference between a 16.2-inch Mini LED backlit LCD and a 12.9-inch LCD is not significant. As a result, the cost gap between the MacBook's OLED and Mini LED-backlit LCD will be smaller than for the iPad.
