Wearable OLEDs

What are wearables?

Wearable computers, also called ‘wearables’, are technological devices that can be worn as clothing or accessories. Some wearables are based on relatively simple technology, similar to a scaled-down desktop computer, but some involve innovative technologies. Wearables include different products, such as fitness bands, wearable headsets, smart watches, healthcare monitoring and displays embedded in textiles.

The wearables market is diverse, but faces similar challenges like minimizing size and weight of components, deciding on optimal display location, choosing suitable services and applications to provide and balancing cost-to-price ratios.

What is an OLED?

OLED is a light-emitting diode built from thin films of organic electroluminescent material sandwiched between electrodes. OLED devices emit light when current is run through them, and are used to develop display and lighting panels. OLED screens are thinner, lighter, more efficient and offer better performance and color quality than other existing technologies.

OLEDs divide into 2 groups: AMOLEDs and PMOLEDs, which refers to how the screen is addressed by the electronics of the device. Simple wearables such as fitness bands usually adopt PMOLED displays, while smartwatches and VR headsets opt for AMOLEDs. Here's more information about AMOLED vs. PMOLED technologies.

The OLED wearables market

OLED displays are very popular in the wearables market - thanks to the great image quality, the low power consumption and to the design possibilities enabled by flexible OLEDs. Most high-end smartwatches, fitness bands and headsets adopt OLED displays, including both Apple's Samsung's smartwatches. Here's our comprehensive list of wearable devices that use OLED displays.

 

Latest Wearable OLED news

Apple cancels its microLED wearable display project

Apple entered into the microLED display industry in 2014, following the company's LuxVue acquisition. Since then the company has been very active with microLED development, with a first goal of replacing its wearable OLED displays with its own microLED displays. 

Apple Watch

Apple started developing microLED displays for wearable devices years ago, first aiming to launch the first product in 2023. The project was delayed several times, as the cost of production for microLED displays was too high for Apple, to the point where it was suggested Apple's goal is to launch the first microLED watch in 2027. One of Apple's key microLED partners, ams-Osram is is building a $850 Million 8-inch microLED epiwafer factory in Malaysia, and yesterday ams-Osram announced that its "cornerstone project" (it did not name Apple specifically) got unexpectedly cancelled. 

Read the full story Posted: Mar 01,2024

Researchers develop a new multi-functional encapsulation that can be used to produce fiber-based wearable OLEDs

Researchers from Korea's Gachon University, Seoul University and Chungbuk University developed a multi-functional encapsulation technology that can be used to develop fiber-based wearable OLED devices, deposited on textiles.

The new OLED device is produced on a light extraction substrate, that is super-hydrophobic - developed by coating a water-repellent layer on a rough surface obtained through ion beam treatment, ensuring excellent uniformity and easy power control. The new encapsulation offers high performance (10-6 g/m-2/day) and also achieves a UV transmission rate of less than 3%.

Read the full story Posted: Feb 23,2024

Samsung announces new foldable phones, tablets and smartwatches, all based on AMOLED displays

Samsung announced several new devices today, all utilizing AMOLED displays. We'll start with the two new foldable phones, the Galaxy Z Fold5 and Z Flip5.  The Fold5 offers a foldable 7.6" 120Hz 1812x2176 foldable AMOLED display, and a 6.2" 120Hz 904x2316 cover AMOLED. The phone has a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, 12 GB of RAM, up to 1TB of storage and a triple camera setup.

Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip5 smartphone offers a foldable 6.7" 120Hz 1080x2640 foldable AMOLED display, and a small 3.4" 720x748 cover Super AMOLED display. The phone has a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, 8 GB of RAM, up to 512GB of storage and a dual camera setup.

Read the full story Posted: Jul 26,2023

AUO may close down its AFPD OLED fab in Singapore as it focuses on microLED for next-gen wearable and automotive displays

AU Optronics has a 4.5-Gen AMOLED production line in Singapore, active since around 2013. The AFPD line is a small-scale operation, and AUO never managed to expand its capacity and compete with large AMOLED producers.

According to a report from Japan, AUO is now considering closing down the AFPD line, and converting it to microLED R&D production line. It could move it back to Taiwan, or retain Singapore as a hub for AUO in Southeast Asia. The company will make a final decision, it seems, in early 2024.

Read the full story Posted: Jun 22,2023

A new version of our OLED and MicroLED Microdisplay Market report released

Today we published a new edition of our OLED and MicroLED Microdisplays Market Report, with all the latest information. The new edition offers more that a dozen new updates, new companies, new brochures and catalogs, and more. Global multinational companies are working hard to develop and deploy next-generation AR and VR devices, and these devices will all be based on OLED and microLED microdisplay engines.

Reading this report, you'll learn all about:

  • The advantages of OLED and MicroLED microdisplays
  • The microdisplays that are available on the market today
  • Information on all companies involved in this market
  • Future technologies and roadmaps

The report package also provides:

  • A list of all OLED microdisplays on the market
  • A list of all OLED and MicroLED microdisplays makers
  • Microdisplays spreadsheet
  • Over 25 datasheets, presentations
  • Free updates for a year

This microdisplays market report provides a great introduction to OLED and MicroLED microdisplays, and covers everything you need to know about the current status of the market and industry. This is a great guide if you're considering to adopt OLED microdisplays in your product, if you're looking to learn more about next-generation micro-LEDs and if you want to understand this industry better.

Read the full story Posted: Jun 21,2023

More details emerge on the OLEDs used in Apple's Vision Pro VR headset

Apple announced its first VR headset, the Apple Vision Pro, and new details are starting to emerge on the displays adopted by Apple. According to Business Korea, the external display (used to simulate the user's eyes) are OLED displays, produced by LG Display. 
 

Apple Vision Pro

We do not know the exact display specifications yet. Business Korea says that these displays cost around $30 to make. They also say that the Sony 4K microdisplays cost around $350 each (which makes sense), and so together the OLED displays in Apple's headset cost over $700 - or almost half the total production cost (estimated at around $1,500).

Read the full story Posted: Jun 12,2023

HKC to start making AMOLED displays in collaboration with JDI using its eLEAP production technology

In 2022, Japan Display (JDI) announced that it has developed a "historic breakthrough in display technology" - a new OLED deposition process which they refer to as eLEAP, that is said to be cost effective and can be used to create freeform OLEDs that are brighter, more efficient, and longer lasting compared to OLEDs produced using mask evaporation (FMM).

JDI eLEAP aperture ratio image

We now hear that China-based LCD maker HKC Corp has signed an agreement with JDI to adopt its technology for mass production of AMOLED displays. Under the agreement HKC will invest billions to build AMOLED factories in China, while JDI will provide the manufacturing expertise and technologies, including eLEAP. The plan is to begin mass production in 2025, with the first applications to be in automotive displays and wearable devices.

Read the full story Posted: Apr 12,2023

Wisechip demonstrates a new miniature PMOLED-based near-eye display

Wisechip has unveiled a new miniature near-eye display module that is based on a small PMOLED display. The company says that this cost-effective solution offers high-contrast and low-power, and can be used for rapid development and applications that only require a simple information display.

The display module combines a 0.19" monochrome (white) PMOLED display, and a small optical system. Wisechip says that the whole module can work up to 20 hours powered by a 70mAh lithium battery.

Read the full story Posted: Mar 03,2023

A new version of our OLED and MicroLED Microdisplay Market report released

Today we published a new edition of our OLED and MicroLED Microdisplays Market Report, with all the latest information. The new edition, which includes our yearly report overhaul, offers more than 15 new updates, new companies, new brochures and attached files, more than 5 new devices and more.

Reading this report, you'll learn all about:

  • The advantages of OLED and MicroLED microdisplays
  • The microdisplays that are available on the market today
  • Information on all companies involved in this market
  • Future technologies and roadmaps

The report package also provides:

  • A list of all OLED microdisplays on the market
  • A list of all OLED and MicroLED microdisplays makers
  • Microdisplays spreadsheet
  • Over 25 datasheets, presentations
  • Free updates for a year

This microdisplays market report provides a great introduction to OLED and MicroLED microdisplays, and covers everything you need to know about the current status of the market and industry. This is a great guide if you're considering to adopt OLED microdisplays in your product, if you're looking to learn more about next-generation micro-LEDs and if you want to understand this industry better.

Read the full story Posted: Feb 21,2023