Roger Fingas
A Sunday report reaffirmed claims that next year's "iPhone 8" will come in separate OLED and LCD versions, with all of the OLED models sporting curved displays.
Apple's OLED panel orders from Samsung Display have been solely for plastic units, not glass ones, The Korea Herald said on Sunday, citing a source. The publication noted that companies typically use glass for flat panels, while plastic allows for curved screens like the one on the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge.
Other iPhone models coming out next year will depend on flat LCDs from LG Display and JDI, the report said.
Samsung's curved OLED capacity is estimated between 70 to 100 million units, less than half of Apple's annual iPhone sales — something that may support the idea OLED will be reserved for a "premium" model.
The Herald source also suggested that Apple may or may not use new technology which "enables the phone to respond when users touch any side of the device."
Past reports have indicated that Apple is working on three iPhones for next year: two LCD models sized at 4.7- and 5.5-inches, like the iPhone 7, along with a curved OLED product measuring 5.1 to 5.2 inches. One or more of the models could use edge-to-edge displays, potentially forcing Apple to embed some components like the Touch ID sensor.
Charles Martin
Christine McKee
Wesley Hilliard
Malcolm Owen
Andrew Orr
William Gallagher
Sponsored Content
47 Comments
Apple has always scrupulously avoided cannibalizing its own sales by carefully minimizing the overlap of their products. As a result, I find it very peculiar that Apple would take a 3 tiered approach with only the top tier having curved displays. This suggests that the middle tier would have a different form factor from the top model (instead sharing the form factor of the bottom tier), other than size, which would be a radical departure from the last several years where the middle and top tier essentially share the same form factor, and only the bottom tier uses a different, and generally older or simplified, form factor. As a result of these two established patterns of Apple management, I take such suggestions with large bags of rock salt.
It isn't about cannibalisation though, a concept I always thought was stupid. After all a sale that isn't made by the other guy is a win. What is a concept is an incoherent product strategy that relegates some company products to second class for marketing reasons. I reckon this rumour is bullshit, as the iPhone is currently the golden egg, and Cook et al seem to be very busy making sure it is the only kind of egg Apple makes. Consequently, making some eggs solid gold and some gilt seems a bit suss.
Look at what a (non) successful strategy has been introducing a higher priced iPad Pro and relegating the other iPads to older Processors. Result is lower sales of iPads overall. Surely Cook has learned his lesson there?
Curved displays for phones will be as successful as they have been for TVs.
Put on your thinking caps. What use is there for wrapped display? What value is added to the user experience?
Any ideas?...