Apple iPad 3 to have an OLED display?
Apple fans are a bit like conspiracy theorists. When Apple's acting CEO Tim Cook took a trip to Samsung headquarters there were immediately theories that he was looking into using Samsung's OLED displays for the iPad 3.
According to Techradar, the story is that Tim Cook offered Samsung an advance for the OLED displays. Cook was reportedly looking to guarantee the hi-tech displays for use in the next iPad with a release later this year.
Regardless of the rumors why are OLED screens so sought after? An iPad with an OLED touchscreen would be better than its old LED display. The OLED iPad will be thinner and lighter than its predecessors and will have better response time and more vivid colors. Although the OLED uses more power, it is still a better option and a step up for the iPad. That is if the rumors are true and the iPad 3 will be using an OLED screen.
The rumor as attractive as it is might be a little too far-fetched. Samsung's Gen 5.5 plant could be crank out 100,000 substrates per month. It might not be enough supply for Apple's popular tablet. The iPad 2 is shipping at a rate of 2.4 million to 2.6 million iPads per month. A new iPad could easily outsell that. The cost of an OLED screen could be the final nail in the coffin. Samsung is reluctant to use the screen because it's too expensive to create a proper profit margin.
This doesn't mean that an iPad with an OLED screen is completely off the table. The cost of the screen could be offset by Apple's large demand for screens. At some point in the future the screens will be less expensive to produce than today's screens.