Overview
- Counterpoint Research now expects total OLED panel shipments in 2026 to be flat as higher DRAM and NAND prices weaken smartphone demand.
- Within phones, the forecast calls for rigid OLED panels to fall about 15% year over year, flexible panels to hold flat, and foldable panels to grow about 34% after a downgrade from earlier estimates.
- Non‑phone displays are set to offset some of the slump, with OLED monitors projected up 45%, tablets up 13%, and notebook PCs up 33% helped by Apple’s expected switch to OLED MacBook Pro screens.
- Apple, Samsung, and other manufacturers are leaning into premium and foldable devices to absorb higher component costs, a shift that can mean fewer true budget options for shoppers.
- The Korea Herald reports Korean panel makers gained share as China’s BOE struggled with iPhone panel quality, and supply‑chain reports say Samsung Display plans to start making panels for an unannounced Apple foldable in late June.