Tag: panel
Falling Mac Sales Have Apple’s OLED Panel Suppliers Spooked
Apple will launch its first OLED iPads next year and South Korean panel makers intend to use their existing Gen 6 OLED lines to cover Apple’s 2024 supply needs. But for iPads and MacBooks after that, Samsung Display and LG Display plan to build Gen 8 production lines, which yield more OLED panels per substrate than Gen 6 lines and are more cost effective.
However, according to The Elec, the two panel makers have yet to place orders for key equipment needed to build the Gen 8 production lines, which take at least a year to complete.
The outlet’s sources suggest the Korean panel maker’s hesitancy to invest is directly linked to concerns over profitability. There is no precedent for OLED panels being used in MacBooks, therefore ambiguity remains over how much Apple will be willing to pay for the panels.
But there is now growing concern over just how many units Apple will order given the recent slump in MacBook sales. Apple in its recent quarterly earnings call reported a significant year-over-year decline in Mac revenue, falling from $10.4 billion to $7.2 billion. In the previous quarter, Mac revenue was also down to $7.7 billion compared to $10.9 billion in the year-ago quarter.
The decline follows a pattern amid a severe downturn in the global PC market, with reports indicating that Apple responded earlier in the year by requesting a temporary suspension in the production of Mac processors, and they only resumed at half of supplier TSMC’s production capacity.
With OLED displays in MacBooks likely to only increase the sales price, display panel suppliers reportedly believe Apple will inevitably attempt to cut unit prices down.
Samsung in April said it plans to spend 4.1 trillion won ($4.1 billion) building Gen 8 OLED production lines up to 2026. With the Korean display maker facing demands from OLED machine suppliers to pay development fees on top of machine prices, and LG Display already in the red, both face difficult investment choices in the months ahead without guaranteed orders from Apple.
Apple reportedly plans to sequentially introduce new iPad Pro and Mac with OLED displays. Display analyst Ross Young said that he expects a MacBook Air with an OLED panel to launch as soon as 2024, which could also be the year Apple launches an OLED iPad Pro.
Samsung is expected to have a lasting role in supplying the OLED panels, contributing to the iPad Pro, MacBook Air, and 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pros, although the Pro models are not expected to transition to OLED displays until 2026.
This article, “Falling Mac Sales Have Apple’s OLED Panel Suppliers Spooked” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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Senate votes to restore solar panel tariffs, but Biden expected to veto
Apple Reportedly Planning 32- and 42-Inch OLED Displays for 2027 Amid Switch to New Panel Technology
Omdia’s latest IT OLED display forecasts, seen by OLEDInfo, claim that worldwide OLED shipments will rise rapidly from around 9.7 million units in 2022 to over 70 million in 2028. Most of this growth will be driven by laptops, but the number of OLED tablets will also increase sharply during this period.
The main contributor to this expected increase is said to be Apple’s expanded use of OLED displays across its devices. In line with other rumors, Omdia believe that Apple will begin using OLED panels for the iPad starting with new iPad Pro models next year, followed by an OLED MacBook Pro in 2026. Apple will almost entirely phase out LCD and mini-LED displays on mobile devices by 2026.
In 2027, Apple will apparently begin using QD-OLED or WOLED panels for 32-inch and 42-inch displays, likely for future iMac or external display models. The Pro Display XDR is Apple’s only existing product with a 32-inch display and there is no currently 42-inch device.
This article, “Apple Reportedly Planning 32- and 42-Inch OLED Displays for 2027 Amid Switch to New Panel Technology” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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2024 iPad Pro Models Likely to Debut Thinner Hybrid OLED Panel Tech
The new hybrid technology reportedly combines rigid OLED glass substrates with flexible OLED thin-film encapsulation (TFE), making the panels thinner than rigid OLED panels. The process also incurs lower production costs than flexible OLED panels because it doesn’t require a backlighting layer.
Conventional rigid OLED panels use two glass substrates, but in a hybrid OLED panel the top glass substrate is replaced with TFE. This makes the panel thinner, while the remaining bottom glass substrate is etched even thinner from 0.5mm to 0.2mm.
The resulting “ultra-thin glass” is more vulnerable to breaking while being moved to the next process in the production line, therefore LG is developing a simultaneous etch-and-cut process to mitigate risk.
Reference to the hybrid OLED technology first appeared in an August 2022 report from The Elec, which said Apple could adopt it in iPads by 2024. Today’s report suggests that for now LG will only apply the new technology in its Gen 8 OLED line, while its current Gen 6 OLED line will continue to be used to produce iPad models into next year.
According to the report, Samsung began developing the hybrid technology earlier than LG and will deploy it immediately for the OLED iPad panels it will manufacture on its Gen 6 OLED line. The report does not mention which iPad models will be first to benefit, but according to display industry consultant Ross Young, Apple plans to introduce its first 11-inch iPad Pro and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models with OLED displays in 2024.
This article, “2024 iPad Pro Models Likely to Debut Thinner Hybrid OLED Panel Tech” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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LG and Samsung are again close to signing an OLED panel supply deal
Secrets fans learned about ‘Ahsoka’ at its Star Wars Celebration panel
Ahsoka is officially the next Disney+ series coming to excite Star Wars fans everywhere. The character, created by Dave Filoni and named by George Lucas 15 years ago, became a formidable, heart-warming, and heroic presence in the animated Clone Wars TV and film series, and she’s been woven into other animated Star Wars offerings as well. Now, following a brand new trailer for the live-action series presented at Star Wars Celebration 2023, at ExCel London, here’s everything we learned about casting, plot, and collaborators on Ahsoka.
Dawson, Filoni, and the new show’s co-creator Jon Favreau joined a panel of stars including Natasha Liu Bordizzo and Mary Elizabeth Winstead – who play Star Wars: Rebels characters Sabine Wren and Hera Syndula – plus villains: Ivanna Sakhno (Shin Hati), Diana Lee Inosanto (Morgan Elsbeth) and Ray Stevenson (Baylan Skoll). In typical covert fashion, the panel skirted around much of the specific details of the series and did not offer a more specific August 2023 launch date, but fans finally got the confirmation that they wanted about Grand Admiral Thrawn.
What to expect from Lars Mikkelsen’s jump to live-action as Thrawn
Tweaking the teaser trailer shown at the Lucasfilm Showcase a day earlier, fans got to see more than the back of big, bad Grand Admiral Thrawn’s head; they got to see for the first time Lars Mikkelsen’s face as the live-action villain after voicing the character in the animated series. Created by Timothy Zahn, Thrawn, a member of the Chiss race who became an Imperial military leader, led a trilogy of novels following his efforts to lead remnants of the Galactic Empire against the New Republic. The Mandalorian has already hinted that this Star Wars Legends storyline has been adapted for the live-action series; in the trailer, Ahsoka says, “We started hearing whispers about Thrawn’s return as heir to the Empire,” which is the title of Zahn’s first Thrawn novel.
“It was so unique and wonderful to have this kind of Moriarity villain; strategically brilliant [who] doesn’t have the Force but it doesn’t matter,” says Filoni. “He will outsmart you and track you, play chess better than you. That was so compelling to read. It’s [Zahn’s] thing and we feel really, really privileged — Lars too — that we get to bring it to life in this way, but we want to make sure we get it right.”
The storylines and relationships that will drive Ahsoka
Over the course of the series, Ahsoka will continue her mission to locate the AWOL Imperial leader as well Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi). “Her relationship with Ezra is something that’s really powerful and so I think that’s just always top of mind for her and is probably what continues to drive her,” says Dawson. The Jedi and Ghost crew member trapped himself with Thrawn in hyperspace at the end of season four along with a semi-sentient whale creature called a purrgil which is glimpsed at the end of the Ahsoka trailer. Is it the same purrgil? It seems likely as Ahsoka attempts to prevent another Galactic threat from rising.
“She was hot-headed. She’s still stubborn now, but the nuances were something to build on,” says Dawson. “With [Rebels], it feels like I have actual visual memories to reflect upon, and it’s incredible.”
“Though she is not a Jedi, she is really driven by trying to do good and she recognizes a threat that other people aren’t necessarily seeing,” adds the actress. “She’s keeping her eye on the ball and knows that [Thrawn] is something that is formidable and not someone to just take lightly.”
Ahsoka‘s supporting creators
As with prior Star Wars series, Filoni has welcomed a slew of directors to join him on Ahsoka including Peter Ramsey (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), Steph Green (Book of Boba Fett), Geeta Patel (Meet The Patels), Jennifer Getzinger (Westworld) and Rick Famuyiwa (The Mandalorian). Kevin Kiner will also score the music for the series having previously served as the composer for The Clone Wars and Rebels.
“When I tell this type of story with this character, he knows it because he knows the music,” said Filoni. “Kevin has been a through-line from Clone Wars to Rebels and of course, we have this one thing which is collaboration. So everybody gets involved.”
Mandalorian composer Ludwig Goransson also “did some stuff” for the season, Filoni confirmed.
Ahsoka is currently in post-production and scheduled for an August 2023 release on Disney+.
Return of the Jedi’s 40th Anniversary Panel Had Fond Memories and Funny Stories
“Scary teddy bears,” Emperor Palpatine himself, Ian McDiarmid, said. “The end of Palpatine.” The iconic actor behind Star Wars’ greatest villain was one of four actors to appear on the 40th-anniversary panel for Return of the Jedi at Star Wars Celebration 2023. McDiarmid was joined by Lando Calrissian’s Billy Dee…
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Metal Gear Solid cast panel reunites David Hayter, Jennifer Hale and Robin Atkin Downes – watch here
Kept you waiting, huh? Almost 15 years after his first appearance in 1998’s Metal Gear Solid, the original Solid Snake, David Hayter joined fellow Metal Gear Solid cast members Jennifer Hale and Robin Atkin Downes for a reunion panel at Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle.
Alongside a career in Hollywood screenwriting, Hayter voiced Snake (in both present-day Solid and prequel Naked varieties) across 8 Metal Gear Solid games, including the breakout PS1 classic, all of the exceptional PS2 and PS3 era entries, and Acid 2, Portable Ops, and Peace Walker on the PSP – which were easily some of the best games on the console.
Probably best-known as the female Commander Shepard in the Mass Effect series, Samus Aran in the Metroid Prime series and from a huge amount of other great cartoons and games, Jennifer Hale voiced Dr Naomi Hunter in the original Metal Gear Solid and MGS 4, as well as Otacon’s sister, Emma Emmerich, in Metal Gear Solid: Sons of Liberty.