The iPhone will be celebrating its 10th birthday in 2017, and the latest buzz word is that Apple has reportedly dropped the LCD display for the smartphone in favor of an OLED one.
The source of the information is none other than a high profile executive from Apple's supplier Foxconn, which manufactures the iPhone for the Cupertino company.
Buh-Bye LCD Screen, Hello OLED
Tai Jeng-Wu, the newly appointed CEO of Japan-based Sharp, which is owned by Foxconn, inadvertently let slip that the next-gen iPhone — dubbed the iPhone 8 — will not deploy the traditional LCD screen but an OLED one.
Speaking at the Tatung University in Taipei, Tai spilled the beans over the weekend to the Nikkei Asian Review.
"The iPhone is in the midst of evolving. It's switching from [low-temperature poly-silicon] to OLED panels," revealed Tai when talking about the next-gen iPhones.
For the unfamiliar, an OLED or organic light-emitting display shows far more "truer" and deeper blacks when compared to an IPS screen. Because OLED is lighter than an IPS panel, it is easily flexible and curved. While Apple rivals like Samsung, which Cupertino has allegedly dropped as chipmaker for the iPhone 8, are already deploying OLED panels in their devices, the former is yet to take the leap of faith.
However, if Tai's assertion is to be taken seriously, then the iPhone 8 could change things and use the superior panel. Whether Apple's gamble will hit the bull's eye or be a complete failure is anybody's guess, a sentiment echoed by the Sharp CEO.
"We don't know whether OLED iPhones will be a hit, but if Apple didn't walk down this path and transform, there will be no innovation. It is a crisis but it is also an opportunity," added Tai.
During his speech, Tai also disclosed that Sharp had beefed up production of OLED panels. However, he did not elaborate further or confirm if Sharp would be the one supplying the panels to Apple.
OLED Displays To Be Manufactured In The U.S.
Tai, though, did hint that a "key customer" for Sharp could possibly demand that the OLED panels be manufactured in the U.S.
This is not the first time rumors of an OLED panel for the next-gen iPhone, which is anticipated to bring some exciting new features such as wireless charging and an iris scanner, have emerged. In November 2015, we reported that Apple intended to switch to OLED screens instead of LCD panels for the iPhones by 2018.
In September 2015, rumors were rife that Apple was contemplating opting for a curved flexible OLED screen for the iPhone 8.
Whether Apple would actually take that leap of faith and go down the OLED route with the iPhone 8 remains to be seen. Considering that the source of the information is a reputable one, we can possibly look forward to an OLED iPhone 8.
