Apple has filed for a patent (number 20220223122) for “electronic device display with extended activity area.” It hints that we may yet see an iMac with a bezel-less (or near bezel-less ) display.
About the patent filing
The active area of a display on Macs obviously contains pixels that display images. Display driver circuits, buttons, cameras, and other components that don’t emit light are located in an inactive border region that surrounds the active area.
In the patent filing, Apple says that if care isn’t taken, the size of the border of a display may be larger than desired. For example, when a component such as a camera or button is located along the border of a display, the border may need to be enlarged to accommodate the camera or button.
This can restrict the amount of display area that is available for presenting visual information to a user. Apple wants to overcome such limitations.
Summary of the patent filing
Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent filing: “An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may be formed from liquid crystal display pixels, organic light-emitting diode pixels, or other pixels. The display may have an active area that is bordered along at least one edge by an inactive area. The active area contains pixels and displays images. The inactive area does not contain any pixels and does not display images.
“The inactive area may have a layer of black ink or other masking material to block internal components from view. The active area may have an opening that contains an isolated portion of the inactive area or may contain a recess into which a portion of the inactive area protrudes. An electrical component such as a speaker, camera, light-emitting diode, light sensor, or other electrical device may be mounted in the inactive area in the recess or opening of the active area.”
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