A social media posting by a known Foxconn executive claims that the supply chain for the "iPhone 8" is having difficulty with producing acceptable quantities of the OLED screen for the device, and is claiming a 40 percent defect rate because of custom cuts in the substrate that Apple is demanding for the device.
First noted by MyDrivers on Sunday, Foxconn Vice President Luo Zhongsheng took to Weibo to note that potential "iPhone 8" purchasers would have to pay a premium for the device. Part of the expense is related to low yields of the OLED screen, as cutting the OLED material for the device is apparently proving to be difficult.
Speculation exists that the cut in question is the for the "notch" expected at the top of the new phone containing the sensors for the front of the "iPhone 8." However, the post isn't clear about that, calling it only a "special cutting."
The post was deleted a few hours after it was made.
The "iPhone 8" is rumored to feature an edge-to-edge OLED panel with a 5.1-inch user space with the remainder dedicated to virtual buttons. The device is expected to fit a larger battery in both size and capacity into a form factor similar in size to the 4.7-inch iPhone 7. Also expected is a new 3D facial scanner .
With a complete redesign, plus the inclusion of a 2.5D curved glass back with wireless charging, some reports have pegged the starting price of the "iPhone 8" at more than $1,000, and others as much as $1,200.