The MicroLED Apple Watch Ultra is now rumored to launch in 2026, not 2025

Apple has been known to be working on an updated version of the Apple Watch Ultra that uses a next-generation microLED display, but the device has been delayed again due to manufacturing issues, according to market research firm Trendforce (via electricity).

Information shared in April Display analyst Ross Young suggested that the Apple Watch Ultra with a microLED display could launch in the second half of 2025 at the earliest, rather than late 2024 as was originally rumored.

Now, Trendforce believes it’s been delayed a second time and is unlikely to appear before the first quarter of 2026, due to issues with high manufacturing costs that need to be resolved before Apple can move forward with mass production.

Apple has reportedly invested more than $1 billion in microLED development in-house over the past decade to reduce its dependence on Samsung Display and tighten control over the supply of key components in the display panel segment.

The ‌Apple Watch Ultra‌ is expected to be the first Apple device to adopt a microLED display. The current Apple Watch Ultra uses standard OLED technology, while MicroLED offers many of the benefits of OLED along with some improvements.

Compared to LED displays, microLED is more energy efficient and will likely significantly increase battery life on Apple Watch Ultra‌ and other devices that adopt the technology in the future. Unlike OLED, there is a much lower risk of screen burn-in, and microLEDs have a much longer lifespan.

MicroLED displays also offer contrast improvements and faster response times due to individual lights at the pixel level, plus better and brighter color. In short, it is a next generation technology that is superior to OLED and miniLED.

Apple is already testing microLED displays for the Apple Watch, and the displays are said to feature brighter, more vibrant colors and a “coated-on-glass” look for content. Apple plans to bring the technology to the iPhone and other devices in the future.

As with all early rumors about devices released a year, two, or longer, they can be unreliable in terms of launch timing, as Apple often has to push back their release dates due to delays in design, component sourcing, manufacturing, and more. . .