Apple’s latest smartwatch has been recognized as a “Display of the Year” at the annual Display Industry Awards in San Jose. The awards have been running for 25 years, and “showcase the high-quality, innovative work that is taking place in the display industry at every level.”
Apple Watch S4 was one of three winners of the main prize, alongside gargantuan video walls from Samsung and Sony. It’s amusing to see Apple’s tiny screen that sits on your wrist win the same award as these hulking ten-foot-wide beasts, but it just goes to show that all displays are considered by the board, and Apple is clearly ahead of the game in the wearables department.
You can barely tell where the display ends and the bezel begins
Here’s what the Society for Information Display had to say about Apple’s display:
“The display is the defining feature of Apple Watch, and Series 4 pushes that feature farther than ever. The challenge for designers was to make the display bigger without noticeably increasing the size of the case or compromising the battery life. Narrower borders enable a viewing area that’s more than 30 percent larger, while a new display technology called LTPO improves power efficiency, helping users get through the day on a single charge.”
We too were fans of the larger display when we reviewed the Apple Watch S4 last year – it’s an eye-catcher, and one that seamlessly melds with the frame of the device rather than looking like a separate component.
This isn’t the first time that Apple has come away with a pat on the back from the Display Awards. Just last year, both the iPhone X and iPad Pro were recognized for pushing the industry forward – though it’s interesting to note that no smartphone or tablet won an award this year.