2024 is the year MacBook displays go OLED

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2024 is the year MacBook displays go OLED
The sleek 2022 MacBook Air could be replaced in 2024 with one that has a gorgeous OLED display.
Photo: Apple

The first MacBook with an OLED display will launch in 2024, according to an Apple analyst. The laptop will swap out the traditional LED screen for one that’s brighter and more colorful.

Two iPads with OLED displays also reportedly will debut in 2024.

MacBook finally getting an OLED display

OLED (short for “organic light emitting diode”) screens offer several advantages over older technologies, including more-vibrant colors, higher contrast, thinner hardware and increased power efficiency.

But OLED displays cost more to produce, which is why Apple has stuck with LCDs. The company began improving these with mini-LED backlights, though, starting with the 2021 MacBook Pro.

MacBooks will make the jump to the improved type of screen in about two years, according to analyst Ross Young from DisplaySearch.

“It is looking increasingly likely that Apple will launch a 13.3″ OLED notebook in 2024,” he said Thursday via Twitter.

He also noted, “It is expected to be a MacBook Air, but could potentially become a MacBook, MacBook Pro or new category.”

Young is a display expert with contacts inside companies that supply screens to Apple. These sources enable him to make some very accurate predictions.

Not ordinary OLEDs

Some concerns remain about putting OLED screens into MacBooks. While they look better, OLED screens are more prone to burn-in, and wear out more quickly than traditional LEDs. But there’s optimism these drawbacks can be overcome.

“All 3 new Apple OLED products in ’24 will use a tandem stack which boosts brightness & lifetimes & can reduce power consumption by around 30%,” Young predicted Thursday. “Also expected to have variable refresh which also improves battery life.”

Luke Dormehl contributed to this article.

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