Samsung Display and LG Display set aggressive supply targets
Samsung Display is expected to see increased supply of OLED panels for iPhones next year as Apple is expected to ship the highest number of OLED-using iPhones in 2021.
Apple is expected to ship between 160 million to 180 million units of iPhones that use OLED panels next year, sources within Samsung Display said.
The figure combines the expected shipment for iPhone 13 and iPhone 12.
Apple used OLED panels for its entire iPhone 12 line-up, which is expected to ship around 100 million units this year.
Cupertino is expected to use OLED panels for all models in its iPhone 13 series as well.
Samsung Display is hoping to have around 140 million iPhones launching next year to use its OLED panels, the sources said.
LG Display is expected to provide its OLED panels for around 30 million iPhones; BOE is expected to take the remaining 10 million units, according to Samsung’s estimation.
Meanwhile, LG Display’s goal is to ship OLED panels for over 40 million iPhones next year, sources within the company said. This will be double the around 20 million it supplied for this year.
In LG’s calculations, Samsung is expected to supply OLED panels for around 130 million units, with BOE supplying around 10 million.
BOE is aiming to ship 20 million panels to Apple, double the amount its Korean rivals are predicting. However, it remains to be seen whether the Chinese display maker will be able to join Apple’s supply chain as it failed twice in Cupertino’s review. It will reapply to become a panel supplier to Apple in the first half of 2021.
Next year’s OLED panel used for iPhone 13 will be more technologically sophisticated to make compared to those used in iPhone 12.
Two out of the four models launching next year will use low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LPTO) thin-film transistors (TFT). LPTO technology is needed for the screens to reach 120Hz refresh rate. All four models will use on-cell touch screens as well.
BOE has supplied on-cell panels for Huawei Mate 40, but is behind in LPTO TFT technology to its rivals Samsung Display and LG Display.