Highlights
- Apple cancelled its micro-LED Apple Watch plans due to production challenges.
- LG is seeking compensation from Apple, although there’s no legal obligation.
- Apple might increase the price it pays LG for OLED displays to offset the loss.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Apple decided to cancel its plans for a micro-LED Apple Watch, finding it too challenging to produce in the necessary quantities.
In a recent development, Korea Electronics Industry Media reports that this decision to cancel micro-LED watches has led to some issues for Apple with their display supplier, LG.
LG was supposed to create a key component for these displays, specifically the backplanes, which are responsible for turning the individual pixels on and off.
Although it is important to note that Apple never placed an official order, they gave LG enough confidence to invest over a million dollars in preparing for production.
Now, LG is reportedly seeking compensation from Apple for the project’s cancellation.
The Elec report says, “LG Display was found to have requested compensation from Apple for the suspension of the micro-LED Apple Watch development project in the first half of this year […] It is known that the amount invested by LG Display to carry out the micro LED backplane process is more than tens of billions of won (upwards of $1.5M) considering the opportunity cost.”
“In the second half of 2022, LG Display moved some of its equipment from Gumi, Gyeongsangbuk-do to Paju, Gyeonggi-do. This was the time when the micro-LED Apple Watch development plan was taking shape. LG Display has set up a task force (TF) in Paju, securing space for the micro LED backplane process, and recruiting manpower. Several LG Display equipment partners also prepared to deliver the equipment at the same time,” the report further states.
Hartley Charlton for MacRumors: As a result of the device’s cancelation, LG Display has apparently been left with substantial sunk costs, including the expense of purchasing 14 U.S. patents related to microLED technology from Taiwan’s Ultra Display. The company now faces potential claims from its equipment partners, some of whom had also invested in the project without formal contracts in place. LG also moved equipment from Gumi in Gyeongsangbuk-do to Paju in Gyeonggi-do, secured space for the microLED backplane process, and recruited specialized personnel to form a task force dedicated to the project.
Overall, LG reportedly spent hundreds of billions of won to prepare for the microLED Apple Watch.
Apple’s decision to cancel the project was reportedly based on concerns about the economic viability of microLED technology for the Apple Watch.
While there doesn’t seem to be any legal obligation for Apple to compensate LG, the report suggests that Apple may increase the price it pays LG for OLED displays used in iPhones and iPads as a way to make up for the loss.
In a previous March 2024 Bloomberg report, reporter Mark Gurman highlighted what exactly went wrong with Apple’s plan. He noted, “In 2018, the company believed it was capable of bringing the screens to the Apple Watch as early as 2020. That timeline ended up getting delayed until 2024, and then 2025 and beyond. The situation was similar to Apple’s work on the electric car, whose release was postponed several times.”
Gurman further explains, “For all their benefits, microLED screens were difficult to produce in sufficient quantities. Manufacturing them required cutting-edge technology and a complicated process called LED transfers — the placing of pixels in the display. Though Apple owned the design and manufacturing process for the microLED screens, it enlisted a number of partners to handle mass production and tasks like LED transfers.”
This isn’t the first costly project Apple has cancelled in recent times.
The Cupertino giant has also dropped their plans for an autonomous electric vehicle.
With these projects being shelved and the launch of the Apple Vision Pro, it seems that Apple CEO Tim Cook is paving the way for his eventual retirement.
Back in 2021, Cook mentioned that he didn’t expect to be at Apple in 10 years.
Gurman highlights how “when Apple hatched the microLED plan years ago, it saw the technology as a successor to the current standard: organic LED screens, or OLEDs. It expected to eventually push microLEDs into all of its products, from Apple Watches to iPhones to Macs.”
It seems, Apple for now believes that OLED is the current best technology for its smartwatch.
Meanwhile, it will be interesting to see where LG’s compensation push lands as both Apple and LG would not want to sour their relationship over a cancelled project when they have other mutual fronts to cater to.
FAQs
Q1. What is the nature of the collaboration between Apple and LG?
Answer. Apple and LG have partnered on various projects, including the development of advanced OLED displays for Apple’s iPad Pro and MacBook models.
LG provides specialized OLED materials to enhance display quality and performance.
Q2. What are some recent projects Apple and LG have worked on together?
Answer. Recently, Apple and LG have worked on integrating LG’s “RDE” OLED material set into the upcoming iPad Pro models.
They are also planning to use LG’s “RDG” OLED materials for future MacBook models.
Q3. How does the Apple-LG partnership benefit Apple’s products?
Answer. The collaboration allows Apple to integrate LG’s cutting-edge OLED technology, resulting in displays with better brightness, lower power consumption, and longer lifespan.
This enhances the overall user experience on devices like the iPad Pro and MacBook.
Q4. Why did Apple cancel the microLED Apple Watch?
Answer. Apple decided to cancel its plans for the micro-LED Apple Watch due to several significant challenges.
The primary issue was the difficulty in producing micro-LED displays in the necessary quantities, which proved to be a substantial hurdle.
Additionally, the high production costs associated with micro-LED technology made it economically unviable for the Apple Watch.
Apple also determined that the micro-LED technology would not significantly increase the added value of the product, leading to the decision to halt the project.
Q5. How did Apple’s move toward micro-LED ?
Answer. Apple is still has complete its transition to its third display technology, OLED:
- Originally, it used LCD with conventional backlighting
- Then it moved on to LCD with mini-LED backlighting
- The Apple Watch, iPhone, and latest iPads currently use OLED
With MacBooks to follow
Apple is looking ahead to an even more advanced display tech, however, known as micro-LED. This offers even brighter displays with greater color accuracy, longevity, and power efficiency, and without the burn-in weakness of OLED.
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