iPhone X has the best smartphone display ever, thanks to Samsung

Every new iPhone release comes with the promise of its display being put through its paces by specialist company DisplayMate, and the iPhone X has come through with flying colors.

Self-described as “the industry standard for testing, evaluating and comparing all types of displays and display technologies”, DisplayMate conducts ‘shoot-outs’ with pretty much every display-equipped product you can imagine, and in the case of mobile devices, has been doing so for over a decade.

Its latest shoot-out of the iPhone X OLED display is certainly extensive, but the bottom line is that the company is calling it “the best smartphone display” with “uniformly consistent, all-round, top-tier display performance”. 

So what makes it so darn good?

Several factors considered by DisplayMate contributed to its glowing verdict, with some of the more pertinent ones include setting (or at least matching) the following records: 

  • Highest absolute color accuracy for any display (0.9 JNCD) 
  • Highest full screen brightness for OLED smartphones (634 nits) 
  • Highest full screen contrast rating in ambient light (141) 
  • Highest contrast ratio (infinite) 
  • Lowest screen reflectance (4.5%) 
  • Smallest brightness variation with viewing angle (22%) 

While these records are indicative of the terrific performance of Apple’s first OLED display, the “impressive precision display calibration that Apple developed” is what transforms the hardware into the terrific user experience that DisplayMate raves about.

But what has Samsung got to do with it all?

While Apple is responsible for the calibration and adaptive software that brings the display to life, DisplayMate makes sure to “congratulate Samsung Display” for developing and manufacturing the OLED display hardware itself, as it was "the only company manufacturing them in high volume".

See what happens when we all just get along?

Harry Domanski
Harry is an Australian Journalist for TechRadar with an ear to the ground for future tech, and the other in front of a vintage amplifier. He likes stories told in charming ways, and content consumed through massive screens. He also likes to get his hands dirty with the ethics of the tech.