LG Display hints at deal to begin making OLED panels for Apple's iPhone X

LG Display may be on the verge of providing display panels for the iPhone X, entering Apple's OLED supply chain earlier than expected and reducing dependence on Samsung.

"Regarding the OLED supply deal for Apple's iPhone X, nothing has been set in detail," the company wrote in a regulatory filing seen by The Korea Herald. "When anything is confirmed in detail, we will announce it, or [otherwise an announcement will be made] in a month."

The Korea Exchange asked LG to provide clarification following a local media story claiming it had already signed a deal with Apple, and was installing production equipment at its Paju E6 assembly line. It was even said that manufacturing would start in June, fulfilling an order for 60 million panels.

As recently as September, reports suggested that LG would probably be unable to make Apple OLED panels in any substantial quantity until 2019. The company may have been given a $2.7 billion boost from Apple in July, though, and in November it announced plans to spend $13.7 billion on OLED for TVs and mobile devices through 2020 — with most of the money going to smartphones.

At the moment Samsung is the exclusive supplier of OLED panels for the iPhone X, being the only firm with enough production capacity to meet Apple demands. The company has been using OLED panels on its phones for years, including curved ones on devices like the Galaxy S8.

Apple is rumored to be preparing two OLED iPhones for 2018: a 5.8-inch model like the iPhone X, and a massive 6.2- to 6.5-inch design that would go toe-to-toe with Samsung's biggest phones. It may also be working on a 6.1-inch LCD iPhone, which could have a metal back.

13 Comments

wood1208 2930 comments · 10 Years

About 6 years ago

LG just announced V30 based OLED phone for $1800, limited quantities. Possibly a pre-production iPhone OLED run and used into real phone to prove LG's OLED on par with iPhone X.

ksec 1502 comments · 18 Years

wood1208 said:

LG just announced V30 based OLED phone for $1800, limited quantities. Possibly a pre-production iPhone OLED run and used into real phone to prove LG's OLED on par with iPhone X.

Is that the same V30 as the previous one? Because the one announced in IFA and out in October is not priced at $1800.

And it has a shit OLED screen.

muthuk_vanalingam 1367 comments · 8 Years

ksec said:

wood1208 said:

LG just announced V30 based OLED phone for $1800, limited quantities. Possibly a pre-production iPhone OLED run and used into real phone to prove LG's OLED on par with iPhone X.

Is that the same V30 as the previous one? Because the one announced in IFA and out in October is not priced at $1800.

And it has a shit OLED screen.

Yup, it is the same as previous V30, but with higher storage and better aesthetics and available only within South Korea. LG made only 300 of them, so they don't need to fool more than 300 people in South Korea.
I don't think it is a pre-production iPhone OLED. There is no way Apple would settle for such a mediocre display. Even OnePlus did not settle for it, only Google settled for it for Pixel 2 XL since LG themselves were the manufacturers.

ericesque 29 comments · 7 Years

I don't think it is a pre-production iPhone OLED. There is no way Apple would settle for such a mediocre display. Even OnePlus did not settle for it, only Google settled for it for Pixel 2 XL since LG themselves were the manufacturers.

Let's hope not. The screen is the only thing that kept me from getting the Pixel 2 XL.

melgross 33607 comments · 20 Years

Oh lord, I’m really concerned here. With iPhone X production rising substantially,, is this really needed at this time? Concerns about LG OLED quality are real. What about this would change that? I know that the panels Samsung produces have Apple technology inside, as Apple confirmed that. But still, Samsung seems to have the quality issues figured out.

from what I see of LG’s screens, they have not.