One of the mysteries left unsolved after the announcement of the Google Pixel 3 and Google Pixel 3 XL has finally been answered. Yesterday, it was revealed that the larger Pixel 3 XL features an OLED panel manufactured by Samsung. Today, we now have confirmation that the smaller Pixel 3's display is manufactured by LG Display. This news comes courtesy of iFixit, which tore down the Pixel 3 and identified the panel.

We were able to independently discover evidence that the Pixel 3 XL and Pixel 3 featured an OLED panel from Samsung and LG respectively by examining vendor files from the devices. We discovered a vendor file referencing a 6.3-inch display and the same Samsung DDIC used in the Samsung Galaxy S9. We also discovered a separate file referencing a Samsung-made digitizer. Thus, we concluded that the Pixel 3 XL featured a Samsung-made display panel. There was another vendor file referencing an LG display panel with ID SW43408, which appears to be a newer generation panel than the one found on the Google Pixel 2 XL: the SW43402. Finally, iFixit confirmed our findings through physical evidence by tearing down both devices to view their components.

The Google Pixel 2 XL was widely criticized last year for issues pertaining to temporary image retention, smearing of black colors at low brightnesses, and graininess. However, Google's calibration of the display was on point. While we haven't had a chance to thoroughly review the display calibration of the two Pixel 3 devices, our preliminary findings based on our hands-on experience were quite positive. There are definitely noticeable differences between the two displays, but that doesn't mean the Pixel 3's display is inferior because it's manufactured by LG Display. LG has improved their OLED displays since the Pixel 2 XL, as seen on the recently released V40 ThinQ, and Google's calibration has already shown to be excellent this year as seen by DisplayMate's review.