Apple wants to keep making its iOS products thinner and lighter each year, and one way to make any device thinner is to make its display thinner. Apple is reportedly investigating a display solution from Sharp that's thinner, more sensitive to touch, more beautiful to look at, and sucks up less power than current-gen displays on the iPhone and iPad.
A new report from DigiTimes says Apple is interested in Sharp's ultra-thin, ultra-thin IGZO
displays, and may choose to use the technology in its next-generation
iPhone, iPad, and iPad Mini products expected to release next year.
"The
sources said Apple is in further discussions with Sharp over IGZO panel
production capacity estimates for 2013 and is also inquiring about
whether AU Optronics' (AUO) L5C line could be used to produce the
technology," DigiTimes said.
Displays made from indium gallium zinc oxigo -- IGZO for
short -- are not only the best choice for any ultra-thin hardware
devices Apple may hope to produce, but the displays can also reportedly
handle a display density north of 330 ppi, which would be pretty
impressive considering the new iPad 4 can only achieve 264 ppi.
But
one of the best aspects of IGZO technology, besides its display quality
and thinness, is its lower power consumption. Most Apple products, from
the iPhone 5 to the iPad 3 and 4, require massive batteries to power
the devise for 8 hours -- this is because the Retina Displays on these
large devices are extremely power hungry. If Apple wanted its iPhone 6,
iPad 5 or iPad Mini 2 to not only last longer during the day but also
charge faster when plugged in, IGZO seems to be the way to go.
Sharp was originally believed to be making IGZO display panels for the first-generation iPad Mini -- this turned out to be false. However, a Nov. 7 note
from analyst Horace Dediu points out that Apple spent $2.3 billion for
"product tooling, manufacturing process equipment and infrastructure"
this year; Dediu believes this massive pile of cash was used to bail out
Sharp, which has been in financial straits, and to leverage their
investment in next-gen display making.
"Sharp is a key supplier of screens to Apple but is also in financial distress,"
Dediu wrote in his analysis. "Sharp has also been the object of an
intended investment by Foxconn [Hon Hai]. That deal fell through as
Sharp’s finances deteriorated. My guess is that these attempts to shore
up Sharp are directed by Apple to ensure both continuity of supply and a
balanced supplier base (offsetting Samsung, another supplier.) If Sharp
were to enter into some form of bankruptcy, the key plant(s) used in
producing screens for Apple might be 'up for grabs' by creditors and
they might be taken off-line, jeopardizing Apple’s production capacity,
irrespective of contractual obligations."
Companies like Qualcomm have invested in Sharp's promising display technology, but believe Sharp is going all in on IGZO to save the company.
Luckily for Sharp, it looks like many companies will need its IGZO technology to
In a report from the Middle East North Africa Financial Network (MENAFN) dated Nov. 7, AUO's detailed plans to develop a Retina Display
for the next iPad Mini noted that achieving the high resolution
required to make the screen a "Retina Display" may require IGZO
technology.
"With the disclosure of the specifications
for the next-generation iPad Mini by Apple Inc., AU Optronics Corp. has
been developing a retina panel with resolution as high as 497 ppi,"reported the SinoCast Daily Business Beat
via MENAFN. "It is said that ultrahigh resolution can not be developed
without the technology of indium gallium zinc oxigo (IGZO), and the
technology of Gate IC on array (GOA) is also indispensable since the
next-generation iPad Mini will have an ultra-narrow frame. The
technology of GOA helps save the room of IC on the rim and narrow the
frame of the screen to the largest extent."
Furthermore,
Innolux Corporation has reportedly also been licensed by Sharp to use
IGZO technology on its 3G and 5G lines, which may indicate Innolux's
intentions to enter Apple's supply chain some time in the near future,
according to DigiTimes' sources.
"Market
observers said if Japan- and Korea-based panel makers are able to
provide adequate IGZO panel capacity to Apple in 2013 for its future
products then Korea-based panel makers' panel shipments are likely to
decline during the period," DigiTimes wrote.
Sharp may
need to get moving on these displays if it hopes to include IGZO in the
next-generation of iOS devices from Apple this year, including the
alleged iPhone 6, iPad 5 and iPad Mini 2. On Nov. 19, DigiTimes said Apple's suppliers are expected to churn out a new iPhone and new iPad "around the middle of 2013."
"Apple
is expected to introduce its next-generation iPad and iPhone series
around the middle of 2013, which will boost demand for ICs in particular
communications-related chips during the latter half of the first
quarter," said DigiTimes, citing "market observers."
Days prior to DigiTimes' report, China's Commercial Times reported
that Apple is planning to begin "trial production of a new version of
its iPhone 5," which it called the "iPhone 5S," rather than the "iPhone
6." No name for the next-generation iPhone has been appointed by Apple,
and it won't receive an official name until its eventual unveiling.
"Facing
low yield rates in the production of iPhone 5, Apple has accelerated
the certification processes for related parts and components for the
iPhone 5S," The Commercial Times wrote.
Jessie Shen of DigiTimes added
that two companies Apple has contracted to work on its iOS devices,
including chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC)
and packaging group Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE), are
expected to report strong results for the first quarter of 2013. This
would make sense with Apple's alleged timetable, given the massive
amount of components needed to ship these popular smartphones and
tablets on time.
The Commercial Times made no mention
of a new iPad, but like DigiTimes, The Commercial Times also claimed
that the iPhone 5 successor could start mass production around Q1 2013
and launch in early to mid-summer 2013 -- even though Apple has followed
a fall launch schedule for its iPhone since 2011.
While
these two reports may correlate, The Commercial Times and DigiTimes
have not always been accurate news sources in the past. The Commercial
Times' reported "pre-production acceleration" of iPhone "5S" parts is
merely speculation -- Apple is always busy on its next project and
getting components ready seems like a very logical step, regardless of
when Apple planned to launch its next iPhone. Save for microprocessors
and cellular chips, most of the "prep" work for an iPhone can be done
ahead of time.
DigiTimes has a better track record than Commercial Times, but not by much. One the one hand, DigiTimes correctly predicted
last December that Apple would launch two new iPads this year,
including an iPad with a 7.85-inch display called "iPad Mini" in Q4
2012, and that's exactly what Apple did. On the other hand, DigiTimes incorrectly reported
that Apple chose Samsung's quad-core Exynos processor to power its
iPhone 5, when in fact Apple went with its own custom-built A6 chip.
The
bottom line is, even though these news companies may have sources
within Apple's supply chains, there is a lot of information to go
around, and the information these sources have isn't always the whole
picture. All rumors and reports from abroad should be taken with a grain
of salt.
iPhone 6, iPad 5, and iPad Mini 2: What We Know
Besides
reports of accelerating chip production -- what else is new -- we've
heard very little else about Apple's seventh-generation iPhone. However,
if Apple pursues any of its recent patent filings, we may see the
iPhone 5S or 6 feature advanced haptics and sensors, possibly built
directly into a flexible display.
A newly released patent filed in March but published in September described
tactile keyboards, flexible displays and laser microphones and speakers
built into an iPhone, designed to conform to the user's needs. Flexible
displays would allow for easier holding and typing, while the highly
advanced tactile screens would create buttons when needed so the user
can feel "keyboard" letters as they type, or touch the topography on
Apple's Maps.
We don't know what Apple has in mind for
its fifth-generation iPad -- or "iPad 5" -- but Apple may have
something interesting in mind, considering its patents for an iPad with a built-in stand, and one with backside controls for gaming.
We haven't heard production on any device that matches those descriptions, but we have heard that Apple is reportedly working
on its second-generation iPad Mini. On Nov. 8, Chinese news site DoNews
said that Apple tapped Taiwan-based AU Optronics to begin development
on a Retina Display to be fitted for its 7.9-inch tablet.
Apple sold 26.9 million iPhone units and 14 million iPad units in Q4 2012.
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