Waving Goodbye to LCD? Apple Reportedly Will Use OLED Displays For All Future iPhones
According to insiders, Apple is set to completely abandon the use of LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) screens in iPhones, with all iPhones sold next year and beyond expected to use OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) displays.
Apple first used OLED displays in the iPhone X in 2017, and since then, it has popularized OLED displays in its mid-to-high-end models, but the iPhone SE series still uses LCD screens.
However, iPhones with LCD screens are about to become history. Insiders say Apple has begun ordering OLED displays for the new iPhone SE from BOE and LG.
Samsung currently holds about half the market share for iPhone OLED displays, LG accounts for about 30%, and BOE about 20%.
Sharp and Japan Display (JDI) previously supplied LCD screens for Apple, and neither company has mass-produced OLED displays for smartphones.
This means that after the old iPhone SE is discontinued, Sharp and JDI will be excluded from the iPhone supply chain business. About 10 years ago, the two companies held 70% of the iPhone display market share. Around 2015, JDI and Sharp delivered nearly 200 million LCD screens for iPhones each year, but by 2023, this number had dropped to around 20 million.
As OLED displays gradually become popular in iPads and other products, it is expected that Apple will further reduce the procurement of LCD screens.
JDI once relied on Apple for 60% of its revenue, and due to Apple's move away from LCD screens, the company has fallen into a situation of overcapacity. As of March this year, JDI has recorded a net loss for 10 consecutive years.
Although JDI is also developing OLED, it only provides small OLED displays for devices like the Apple Watch. The company is currently focusing on adjusting its business strategy around automotive applications for LCD.
Sharp is scaling back its LCD business; the company closed its Sakai factory in Osaka in August, which was responsible for producing large LCDs for televisions. Sharp has also reduced capacity at its Kameyama factory in Mie Prefecture.