Earlier in November, the issue on whether or not Apple would be making a big shift from its thin-film transistor liquid-crystal display (TFT-LCD) to an active-matrix organic light emitting diode display (AMOLED) was in the air and many believed that it is unlikely to happen.
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo was at the front of that claim, believing that Apple would likely stick to the display technology that it currently uses for at least the next three years, although it could go beyond that, according to MacRumors.
According to Kuo, Foxconn Technology plans to put up a screen plant of its own to produce LCDs for the iPhone, with production set to begin by 2018.
But could all this change with latest announcement from LG that it plans to invest a record $8.4 billion on a new OLED plant?
The reason behind the hefty investment is linked to a forecasted boost in the OLED display demand, although there was no mention if such cover smartphones but more on large-sized OLED TV panels and flexible OLED panels for smartwatches and automotive displays.
So with two plants seemingly bent on addressing forecasted display demands, there are some who believe (or probably want to see) Apple consider a big upgrade in the form of OLED display iPhones if the company is indeed one of the reasons why the new LG OLED plant, which will be situated in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea, is being planned.
If so, where does this leave Foxconn?
There is a possible angle to consider here and this pertains to Apple using separate suppliers to address their mobile device needs. Google (Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P) and Samsung (rumored Samsung Galaxy S7s) have done it with their respective smartphone variants, so why not Apple too?
The company could come out with an iPhone with OLED display and another that makes use of TFT-LCD (or something that could be in line for budget-friendly devices). This would be the safest presumption, with the recent development of both plants being put up for now.
The Paju plant may have a bearing on the rumored Apple adoption of OLED display for the iPhone but then again, maybe not (or probably limited to other Apple devices rather than the iPhone line).
