In 2024, Apple is planning to overhaul its iPad lineup with OLED displays starting with its top-of-the-line iPad Pro models.
As rumors of OLED iPads have gained traction, many people have wondered why Apple is planning to transition to OLED just a few years after releasing the first iPad Pro with mini-LED. As we’ve explained in the past, mini-LED is an alternative to OLED that is worse in some ways and better in others.
Mini-LED screens are made up of thousands of small LEDs that are arranged in multiple dimming zones. This allows mini-LED displays to reach higher brightness levels than OLED, but the black levels are still better on OLED displays. This is because the pixels themselves are the things producing the light, so when those pixels need to be black, they can be turned off entirely…
[T]here’s one big drawback to OLED: burn-in. Burn-in is caused by a static image remaining on the display for long periods of time. When this occurs, a visible mark of that image remains on the screen regardless of what you’re watching.
Even though mini-LED, which Apple currently uses in the 12.9-inch iPad Pro and MacBook Pro, is superior to LCD panels, experts still say that OLED is still the best there is. The self-lighting pixels achieve far better image quality than mini-LED dimming zone technology. Burn-in remains a concern, but there are things that can be done in software to mitigate those concerns.
MacDailyNews Take: Until microLED is ready for prime time, OLED is already proven in iPhone and Apple Watch.
See also: Apple plans to offer the myriad benefits of micro-LED displays – February 13, 2023
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