Apple is preparing one of the most meaningful visual upgrades in iPhone history as it moves toward the launch of the iPhone 18 family and its first foldable smartphone. According to multiple supply-chain reports, Apple will introduce a new OLED display architecture that delivers higher brightness, slimmer panels, and improved power efficiency—three upgrades that directly affect how a smartphone looks, feels, and performs.
The new screens will be powered by an advanced OLED panel design developed by Samsung Display. At the heart of this transformation is a breakthrough technology called Colour Filter on Encapsulation (CoE), a next-generation OLED structure that could redefine how smartphone displays are built.
These displays are expected to debut first on Apple’s foldable iPhone and later appear across the entire iPhone 18 lineup, making 2026 a turning point for Apple’s visual hardware strategy.
Why Apple Is Overhauling Its Display Technology
Smartphone screens have reached impressive levels of resolution and color accuracy, but they still face fundamental limits—especially when it comes to brightness, power consumption, and thickness. Apple’s move to CoE technology is designed to overcome all three at once.
Traditional OLED displays use a polarizer layer to reduce reflections and improve contrast. However, this polarizer absorbs a large portion of the light generated by the OLED panel. To compensate, the display must consume more power, which leads to higher battery drain and heat.
CoE changes that equation.
Instead of using a separate polarizer, CoE embeds the color-filter layer directly into the encapsulation layer that protects the OLED pixels. This allows more light to pass through the display without being blocked, creating brighter images while using less power.
In simple terms:
Apple gets brighter screens without sacrificing battery life—and the display itself becomes thinner.
How CoE Technology Changes OLED Displays
The Colour Filter on Encapsulation approach removes redundant layers from the OLED stack. That has several cascading benefits:
1. More Light, Less Energy
With fewer materials blocking light, the display produces higher brightness at the same power level. This improves visibility in sunlight and enhances HDR video and gaming.
2. Thinner Panels
By removing the polarizer, the entire display becomes slimmer. This gives Apple more freedom in device design, either making phones thinner or allowing more room for batteries and cooling.
3. Better Color and Contrast
Since light passes more directly through the display, colors appear richer and blacks remain deeper, improving overall visual quality.
These changes might sound subtle on paper, but in everyday use, they result in a noticeably sharper, more vibrant, and more energy-efficient screen.
Apple’s Foldable iPhone Will Lead the Transition
Apple’s long-rumored foldable iPhone—often referred to as the iPhone Fold—is expected to be the first device to use this new display technology.
Foldable phones face unique challenges:
They are thicker than standard phones, use more power, and struggle with brightness because larger panels require more energy. CoE technology directly solves all three problems.
What Apple’s Foldable iPhone Is Expected to Offer
Industry sources suggest the foldable iPhone will feature:
- A large internal folding OLED display
- A smaller external screen for quick access
- A book-style fold rather than a flip design
With CoE panels, Apple can make the internal display thinner and brighter, reducing hinge stress and improving durability. This could help Apple avoid many of the compromises that currently affect foldable phones from Samsung, Huawei, and others.
Brighter displays also make large screens more usable outdoors—an area where foldables traditionally struggle.
iPhone 18 Will Bring the Upgrade to Mainstream Users
While the foldable iPhone will get the spotlight, Apple is also planning to introduce CoE displays across the entire iPhone 18 lineup.
This means the standard iPhone 18, iPhone 18 Pro, and Pro Max models will all benefit from the same OLED breakthrough.
What iPhone 18 Users Can Expect
The new display tech will enable:
- Higher peak brightness for HDR video and photos
- Better visibility in sunlight
- More accurate colors
- Thinner phones or larger batteries
- Improved battery life during screen-intensive tasks
For everyday users, this translates into clearer video streaming, more immersive gaming, and a phone that stays bright without draining the battery.
Why This Upgrade Matters More Than You Think
Apple upgrades displays almost every year, but this is different. CoE isn’t just another brightness boost—it changes the fundamental structure of the screen.
1. Longer Battery Life Without Bigger Batteries
Because the display is one of the biggest power consumers in a phone, improving efficiency has a huge impact on real-world battery life.
2. Thinner and Lighter Devices
A slimmer display stack gives Apple room to either slim down the phone or add features without making it bulky.
3. Foundation for Future Technologies
CoE panels make it easier to add under-display cameras, Face ID, and new sensor technologies because there are fewer layers interfering with light.
Apple vs Samsung: A New Display Battle
Samsung Display is not only Apple’s supplier—it’s also a major competitor. Samsung plans to use similar CoE-based panels in future Galaxy phones, including the Galaxy S26 Ultra and premium foldables.
This makes display technology one of the biggest competitive battlegrounds in smartphones over the next few years.
Apple’s advantage lies in its deep integration of hardware and software. When combined with iOS display tuning, Apple can extract more real-world performance from the same panel technology than most competitors.
When Will These Displays Arrive?
Supply-chain analysts believe Apple will finalize the CoE panel design by Q3 2025, allowing mass production to begin in time for 2026 releases.
Expected rollout:
- Late 2026: Foldable iPhone with CoE display
- Late 2026 to early 2027: iPhone 18 lineup
- Later models: Potential expansion to iPhone Air and future iPads
Production timelines may shift slightly, but the direction is clear: Apple’s next generation of devices will look significantly better than current models.
What This Means for the Future of Smartphones
As CoE technology spreads, thinner and brighter OLED displays will become the new standard for premium smartphones. Apple’s adoption of this architecture is likely to accelerate industry-wide change.
Display manufacturers such as LG Display and BOE are already developing similar designs, meaning the entire smartphone ecosystem is heading toward a new era of ultra-efficient screens.
A New Visual Era for Apple Devices
The iPhone 18 and Apple’s first foldable won’t just be faster or smarter—they will look better in a way that users can immediately see and feel.
With CoE OLED panels, Apple is positioning its future devices to offer:
- Brighter visuals
- Longer battery life
- Thinner designs
- Improved durability
- Better support for next-gen features
As 2026 approaches, Apple’s display upgrade may prove to be one of the most important shifts in iPhone design since the move to OLED itself.
If the reports hold true, Apple is about to redefine what a premium smartphone screen should be.