Samsung's mobile division sources all of its OLED panels from Samsung Display, a sister company. One would think that Samsung Display would provide the very best of its panels for Galaxy devices first. That has mostly been the case, until now.
Apple just announced the iPhone 14 Pro series. The new handsets feature a display panel that's capable of hitting an eye-searing peak outdoor brightness of up to 2,000 nits. No Galaxy device is capable of hitting that level of brightness right now. For comparison, the Galaxy S22 Ultra claims a peak brightness of 1,750 nits.
Should Samsung's mobile division be worried?
It's been common knowledge for quite a while now that Apple sources OLED panels for the iPhone from Samsung Display. Other display makers have been in the running to win those orders. However, Samsung Display is the only supplier that can provide the quality and volume that Apple requires for its iPhones.
Given the influence that Apple exercises over the entire supply chain for its products, it goes without saying that the company won't just be buying off-the-shelf panels from Samsung Display. It works with the company to create panels that are better suited to its own devices.
Samsung Display may be a part of the Samsung conglomerate but it's also an independent business. Apple ships a huge number of iPhones so this is a lot of business coming Samsung Display's way. Why wouldn't it accommodate Apple's requests, when it's entirely possible that Samsung Display likely makes more money on panel sales to Apple than it does selling Galaxy S22 Ultra units!
If anything, this just highlights the possibility that next year's Galaxy S23 flagships will feature a display with a peak brightness of 2,000 nits or more. Does it give Samsung's mobile division something to worry about, that its sister company is selling better panels to a competitor?
Probably not, since Samsung doesn't have a product that directly goes up against the new iPhones in the second half of the year. Galaxy S fans are already looking forward to next year's lineup which will undoubtedly have better specs. Samsung now pushes foldable phones in the second half of the year and even after a 1,000 days have passed since Samsung launched its first foldable, Apple still doesn't have an answer to that.
