Fans of Apple smartphones were excited when they learned from earlier reports that the new iPhone models would be released with sturdy sapphire screens. However, they were deeply disappointed last September when neither the iPhone 6 nor the iPhone 6 Plus came out with the sapphire display.
But why didn't the supposed sapphire display plan push through for the Apple devices? The latest reports claim that the real reason why the devices did not come out with sapphire screens is the failed deal between the Cupertino-based company and GT Advanced Technologies, which was supposed to supply the tough device screen.
A revelation by The Wall Street Journal states that the supplier failed to meet Apple's demands even after the two companies inked a $1 billion deal. According to the report, GTAT was not prepared to provide the sapphire demand of the Cupertino tech giant.
The report mentioned that the deal between Apple and GTAT was supposed to produce a sapphire manufacturing factory in Arizona. The tech giant wanted to get high-quality sapphire displays at low prices. At first, the company asked GTAT to come up with furnaces that they could use for in-house sapphire production, yet the two corporations later realized that they wanted GTAT to manufacture the sapphire displays themselves. Though GTAT had minimal experience in producing sapphire displays, it still decided to push through with the deal because it allegedly did not want to lose a billion-dollar opportunity.
That was when the problems began. GTAT was reportedly not able to provide what was expected from them, and a lot of money was wasted for the unusable 578-pound furnace cylinder that was supposed to produce the expected number of sapphire displays.
In October, GT Advanced Technologies filed for bankruptcy, which allegedly shocked the execs of Apple.
In a nutshell, GTAT was not able to produce what Apple expected. Conversely, GTAT reportedly blames Apple and its strict contract stipulations for the problems that arose.
With such complications, consumers might be in for a long wait before their expected sapphire display would be featured on an Apple device.
