Apple Watch 6 killer upgrade now looks cancelled

Apple Watch 6 killer upgrade now looks cancelled
(Image credit: Concepts iPhone)

The Apple Watch 6 will not sport the company's microLED display as previous rumors suggested. Instead it will feature an OLED screen like the five generations of smartwatches before it, according to a new leak.

Twitter user @L0vetodream (via MacRumors) tweeted on May 31 that the Apple Watch Series 6 will have the same display as previous Apple Watches in their "dream." This source is known for using the phrase "in my dream" followed by tech intel as a format for their leaks. 

In recent years JDI Display has provided some OLED displays for ‌the Apple Watch‌. @L0vetodream suggests JDI's services have once again been tapped for the upcoming Apple Watch 6.

Rumors until now have considered that Apple Watch 6 would be ready to make the switch from an OLED display to a microLED screen. It could enable a slimmer and more power-efficient Apple Watch. MicroLED displays offer better brightness and don't suffer from the luminance decay problems of traditional OLED panels.

In other words, using micro-LED screen tech could help boost the Apple Watch's lifespan, which currently stands at 18 hours with an always-on display. 

In 2018 Bloomberg reported that the company is working out of a nondescript building in California to produce MicroLED displays. The plan was for the displays to arrive on the Apple Watch first, since the screen is smaller and therefore easier to control, but it's unclear if that's changed.

What we do know is that the Apple Watch 6 is slated to launch in the fall alongside watchOS 7, as well as the iPhone 12. It will reportedly feature sleep tracking, an SpO2 blood oxygen monitor, a library mental health tools and the company's new S6 chipset. 

And it could absolutely be that S6 chip that brings a longer battery life to the Apple Watch, rather than microLED. 

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Kate Kozuch

Kate Kozuch is the managing editor of social and video at Tom’s Guide. She writes about smartwatches, TVs, audio devices, and some cooking appliances, too. Kate appears on Fox News to talk tech trends and runs the Tom's Guide TikTok account, which you should be following if you don't already. When she’s not filming tech videos, you can find her taking up a new sport, mastering the NYT Crossword or channeling her inner celebrity chef.

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