UK-based OFTF developer SmartKem announced that it has signed a Letter Of Intent (LOI) with a display maker in Taiwan to develop and mass produce commercial displays using its OTFT technology.

SmartKem did not name this company, but they did say that the company produces both LCD and AMOLED displays, which means it is likely to be either AU Optronics or Innolux. It is not clear whether the Taiwanes display maker will use SmartKem's technology for future OLED or LCD displays (or, most likely, both).

Taiwan's ITRI (or more specifically its Electronic and Optoelectronic System Research Laboratories or EOSRL) aim to establish a pilot line for Micro-LED displays that will start production in Q3 2018.

According to reports, the line will be used to produce small displays for VR applications - in addition to large-area indoor signage displays. The new line will obviously have a small capacity, but EOSRL believes that Micro-LED displays may grab up a sizable part of the display market.

IKEA launched its first OLED lamp, the Vitsand - a chandelier with 7 OLED panels. The Vitsand provides 700 lumens at 2700K. Each panel is about 77 lm/W (total 7W). The lamp is dimmable, and the panels unfortunately cannot be replaced.

The Vitsand is now available in IKEA Europe for 199 Euro. It is great to see OLED lighting enter a retail store like IKEA, even though the price is still very high. The panels are likely made by LG Display but we are not sure.

OLED microdisplay maker eMagin reported its financial results for Q3 2017. Revenues in the third quarter were $4.3 million, the same as in Q3 2016. Net loss was $3 million in the quarter. As of September 30, eMagin had $2 million in cash and equivalents and a borrowing availability of $3.7 million.

The results were disappointing, in part due to a manufacturing issue that have since been resolved, according to eMagin. The company says it has experienced a heightened level of activity in the third quarter, both in its commercial initiatives as well as its military programs.

IHS Markit performed a teardown analysis of Apple's iPhone X, saying that the total cost of materials in the 64GB model amount to around $370.

IHS estimates the cost of the OLED display module, including the force touch sensor, is $110. KGI securities estimated the display at $120 a few months ago. The iPhone X has a 5.8" 1125x2436 Samsung-made flexible Super AMOLED display.

Samsung introduced the Diamond Pixel display architecture back in 2013 when it launched the Galaxy S4 smartphone, and since then it has adopted this sub-pixel scheme in all of its OLED displays (replacing the previous PenTile scheme).

The 2014 Galaxy S5 introduced a different Diamond Pixel scheme which Samsung uses till today. DisplayMate tested the Apple iPhone X and it turns out that Apple's OLED, even though it is produced by Samsung Display, uses a slightly different Diamond Pixels - the fill factor of Apple's display is higher than in the Galaxy phones. You can see the two different displays in the macro photos above (courtesy of Display Mate). The iPhone X OLED is on the left, while the right shows the Galaxy OLED.

In January 2017 Kopin unveiled its first OLED microdisplay, the 1-inch 120 Hz 2k x 2k Lightning panel, and later reported on an "overwhelming" reaction and a first design win with GoerTek. Kopin now updates that it has "received development orders from several Tier 1 global partners".

In April 2017, Kopin announced that it reached agreements with both OLiGHTEK and BOE Technology to meet its production needs. Kopin has secured capacity from OLiGHTEK's OLED microdisplay fab for the near term (production should begin in Q1 2018) and will also utilize BOE and OLiGHTEK future OLED microdisplay fab.

DisplayMate posted a review of the iPhone X OLED display (5.8" 1125x2436 Samsung-made flexible Super AMOLED). Samsung's own OLEDs are considered by DisplayMate to be the best displays in the world, so we expected this display to be excellent - and DisplayMate confirms it is actually better than Samsung's own displays thanks to impressive precision display calibration that Apple developed that transforms the OLED hardware into a superbly accurate and high performance display.

DisplayMate confirms that this OLED is indeed the brightest full-screen OLED smartphone ever. The iPhone X also offers the highest absolute color accuracy ever tested (visually indistinguishable From perfect), the highest full-screen contrast rating in ambient light, the highest contrast ratio ever (infinite as in all OLEDs) and lowest screen reflectance and the smallest brightness variation with viewing angle.

Following the launch of LG's pOLED displays, we had many recent discussions and reports of OLED burn-in and Image-Retention. Apple now released a support document for the iPhone X, its first OLED phones, in which it warns users that image persistence or burn-in is an "expected behavior".

Apple says it engineered the display to be the best in the industry in reducing the effect of OLED burn-in, though. Apple also says that its OLED could have noticeable but slight shifts in color and hue when seen off-angle. The iPhone X has a 5.8" 1125x2436 Samsung-made Super AMOLED display.

Tom's guide posted an interesting review that compares the OLED display of the iPhone X (5.8" 1125x2436) to the OLED displays of the Galaxy Note 8 (6.3" 2960x1440) and the Google Pixel 2 XL (LGD 6" 2960x1440 pOLED). This is Apple's first OLED phone, but Tom's Guide finds it superior to the OLEDs used by the other phones, especially if you want a realistic color reproduction.

The review shows how the iPhone is brighter than the other displays (574 nits, compared to 438 nits no the Pixel 2 XL and 408 nits on the Note 8. This test was performed for full-screen content. The Note 8 can actually achieve 1,240 nits but on specialized conditions and only when a small part of the screen is active.