OLED Display

Two 'OLED Display' stories November 2013 - January 2015

Latest rumor of OLED displays in iPhones inspired by report on Foxconn display factory

Ben Lovejoy Jan 8 2015 - 6:54 am PT

There are always rumors around that Apple is planning to switch from LCD to thinner, brighter, more power-efficient OLED displays in its iPhones. The latest is a report seemingly originating on Japanese newspaper Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun cited by GforGames via a Chinese site … So take it with the usual large pinch of salt.

Bloomberg reported back in November that Foxconn was building a new $2.6B display factory whose output would be exclusively devoted to Apple. The headline was quickly changed to remove the reference to Apple, though the piece still strongly hinted at Apple being the sole client. This latest report says that the factory in question will be making only OLED displays.

It’s worth noting that, even if the factory is indeed making displays only for Apple, and even if all those displays are indeed OLED ones, that still doesn’t necessarily mean you can expect OLED displays in next year’s iPhones. Apple has already announced that the Apple Watch will use OLED displays, so it’s possible that the company is simply diversifying its supply chain for these. LG is currently slated as the primary supplier of Apple Watch displays.

While OLED has a number of advantages over LCD displays, it is more expensive to manufacture, so a switch is not one that Apple would make without a careful cost-benefit analysis.

Report: Apple’s iWatch will come in 1.3″ & 1.7″ models to accommodate men & women wrist sizes

Jordan Kahn Nov 13 2013 - 6:08 am PT

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DisplaySearch has a bit of a hit and miss track record when it comes to Apple product launches. The research firm often lands itself square in the analyst category with some pretty out there predictions of 12-inch MacBooks and 65-inch 4K Apple TVs, and today it adds yet another to the list by claiming at a press conference in Taiwan today Apple is planning 1.7-inch and 1.3-inch models of its rumored iWatch. The KoreaHerald reports that DisplaySearch’s David Hsieh claims the various OLED display sizes will be to accommodate the differences in male and female wrist sizes. The report adds that Apple has put its TV efforts on hold to work on the wearables:

“It appears that Apple’s long-rumored TV plans, which were far from concrete anyway, have been put on hold again, possibly to be replaced by a rollout of wearable devices.”

Keep in mind DisplaySearch has changed its prediction since its report last month: It previously predicted 1.3 and 1.63–inch models.

According to DisplaySearch, that means any Apple TV plans for the second half of next year have now been delayed.

While we can’t confirm any of DisplaySearch’s info from its report today, Apple is indeed experimenting with wearables. Earlier this year we reported that the product was currently being developed by a team of Apple executives, sensor, and fitness experts.