Last week, we reported that Apple was developing an upcoming iMac with an OLED display that would go up to 600 nits of brightness. By comparison, that OLED display would not be as bright as the OLED displays on today’s flagship iPhone models or even the one on the iPad Pro. There’s a simple explanation for this.
OLED displays on iPhone models have been known for the superior brightness, color accuracy, and contrast ratios as each pixel is individually lit, removing the need for a backlight; however, for something much larger such as on an iPad, as displays get larger, more pixels need to be pushed, which would consume too much power and generates much heat, thus become less energy-efficient. Thankfully, Apple implemented a better solution for the M4 iPad Pro last year, and that was the tandem OLED display (marketed as “Ultra Retina XDR display”), which stacked two low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) OLED panels together for double the brightness. This means that individual pixel wouldn’t require too much power and thus become more efficient and improve the longevity of the display.
Currently, the iPad Pro is the first and only model in the iPad lineup to feature an OLED display. Bloomberg previously reported that both the next iPad mini and iPad Air would adopt that display technology. However, as you could imagine, since the tandem OLED display is more advanced, it would still be more expensive to produce in general. It would be more likely that both the upcoming iPad mini and iPad Air would use the single-stack low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) OLED panel instead to save costs. If we take a look at the current iPad mini and iPad Air, both of which use LCD technology, they both can go up to 500 nits of brightness. So if Apple were to bring the single-stack OLED panel to both of those mid-range iPad models, we could see a 20% increase in maximum brightness (up to 600 nits) while enjoying many benefits that OLED provides.
The MacBook Pro has been heavily rumored to feature a substantial redesign with OLED displays. Currently, the Liquid Retina XDR displays (a.k.a. mini-LED) on the MacBook Pro models can go up to 1000 nits of sustained full-screen brightness or 1600 nits peak brightness for HDR content. If Apple were to maintain or improve those specs, it would be more than likely that Apple will bring the same tandem OLED technology on iPad Pro to the MacBook Pro models. Reports indicated that those tandem OLED displays would make their way to the M6 Pro/M6 Max-based MacBook Pros, which could come as early as the fall of 2026. The MacBook Air is also rumored to follow suit; however, we would have to wait a bit longer for the OLED MacBook Air to come out, and since the MacBook Air is the more budget-friendly laptop, we should expect that machine to just feature the single-layer OLED panel to reduce costs, so we could see the brightness go up to 600 nits of brightness as the current MacBook Air can go up to 500 nits of brightness.
With OLED displays coming to more Apple’s mainstream products, customers will be able to fully appreciate all the benefits of OLED displays without paying prices on products that would cost an arm and a leg. Along with the OLED iMac, the revival of the iMac Pro has been rumored, which may be one of the most exciting products we’ve seen in years. Until then, we wish you a merry Christmas, and may this season be filled with comfort, joy, and cherished memories with your loved ones!
