Apple plans to adopt OLED panels capable of displaying a much wider range of colors, according to a new report from research firm TrendForce.
The new panels would cover 95% of the BT.2020 color standard, which describes a far broader spectrum of colors than the DCI-P3 standard Apple's screens currently target. In practice, that means deeper, more accurate reds, greens, and blues. Reaching those richer colors demands more precise control over the light a display emits, along with better energy efficiency, so TrendForce expects the next round of OLED competition to hinge less on familiar specs like brightness and thinness and more on balancing color, power consumption, and overall performance.
Apple first brought OLED to the iPad Pro in 2024, and the technology is expected to come to the MacBook Pro between 2026 and early 2027. To reach the wider color range, panel makers are changing the chemistry of the layer inside each pixel that actually produces light, moving from a simpler recipe toward more sophisticated designs that pass energy between materials more efficiently.
TrendForce points to several of these new approaches. One makes a pixel emit a purer, more precise color, which is what lets a screen reach the tougher BT.2020 targets. Another adds a "helper" material so the pixel turns energy into light more efficiently. A third mixes in extra materials to keep a panel bright for longer without wearing out.
The shift is also a chance for display makers to rely less on technologies they have to license from others. All of this is said to be changing the relationship between the companies that manufacture displays and the companies that supply the materials inside them, with the winners increasingly being whoever can offer the best mix of cost, ease of manufacturing, and freedom from patent licensing.
Apple plans to adopt the more advanced OLED panels gradually across future MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and iMac models, according to the report.
