14 DAY TRIAL // Apple is reportedly negotiating with Chinese company BOE Technology for OLED displays in upcoming devices. A report by Bloomberg reveals that Apple wishes BOE to supply OLED displays for iPhones and is currently in the testing phase.
If the two companies reach a deal, then BOE would be the first company outside Japan and South Korea to supply displays for iPhones. Reportedly, BOE is currently working on a flexible AMOLED screen and Apple has already started testing the technology for the upcoming iPhone 8.
BOE Technology is currently building two OLED plants in China and has invested $14.5 billion in the process already. However, the report says that the company will most likely miss the launch of the iPhone 8 this year, but will be a supplier for the 2018 iPhone device.
BOE Technology will become a major supplier of OLED displays
One of BOE’s plants in China will start outputting displays this summer, the initial capacity estimate is somewhere around 48,000 substrates per month. The plants will work together to manufacture 1.6 million square-meters of flexible AMOLED glass substrates per year, more than estimates for the total global production in 2016. However, this will happen in about two years' time, after both plants are completed and production reaches full potential.
Previous reports have said that Apple intends to switch from a LED display to an OLED screen for the upcoming iPhone 8, and the high production estimates from the Chinese company suggest that the company will be employing the technology in iPhones to be released in the coming years.
Currently, Samsung Display holds the biggest market share and is a supplier of OLED screens for the iPhone 8; Apple will receive 160 million units of such displays from the firm for the next-generation iPhone. LG Display is also said to provide OLED screens for iPhones.
The upcoming iPhone 8 is expected to come with a reinforced glass back and stainless steel frame, as well as wireless charging. Its estimated price is said to be higher than $1,000.