TPK to Reportedly Supply Flexible AMOLED Panels For Apple's iWatch

TPK-logoApple may be choosing TPK as a touch panel supplier for its rumored iWatch, says a report in China Times (Via Digitimes). The Taiwan-based company will supposedly begin mass production of flexible AMOLED panels for the iWatch in the second half of 2014.

The report said the iWatch will come equipped with a flexible AMOLED display and 3D protective glass. The rumors also speculated that the iWatch will use silver nanowire touch screen technology developed by TPK in conjunction with Japan-based Nissha Printing.

The rumor suggests Apple will use silver nanowire touch screen technology in the iWatch display. Current flat touch panels use indium tin oxide (ITO), which is brittle and not suitable for a flexible display. Silver nanowires, however, are nanometers thin and can be applied to a 3D curved glass surface, like a watch band in a solution-based, roll-to- printing technique. The silver wire matrix is transparent to the eye and conductive, making silver nanowires perfect for a flexible touchsreen display.

Last year, TPK signed a deal with Japanese firm Nissha Printing to start producing silver nanowire touchscreen displays. Production will ramp up in Q2 2014, with a manufacturing output of two million 6-inch touch panels per month.

TPK is among the world's top touch panel manufacturers by volume and has been supplying Apple with panels for several years. The Taiwanese company was one of the primary suppliers of the touchscreen for the original iPad and provided up to 80% of the panels for the iPhone 4S models.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Buy Now)

Popular Stories

Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
hikawa phone grip stand apple%402x

Apple Launches Second Limited-Edition iPhone Accessory in a Month

Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind. Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe. Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

10 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Wednesday November 19, 2025 4:00 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
ipad mini 7 feature red and blue

iPad Mini 8: Four Major New Features to Expect

Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:50 am PST by
Apple's eighth-generation iPad mini is highly likely to arrive next year, offering a significant refresh of the device with at least four major new features. OLED Display The next-generation version of the iPad mini could feature an OLED display, as part of Apple's plan to expand the display technology across many more of its devices. Apple's first OLED device was the Apple Watch in 2015, ...
ipad black friday 2025

The Best Early Black Friday iPad Deals

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:20 am PST by
Black Friday is just over a week away, and iPad deals have finally started to flood in at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. Below we're tracking discounts on every current generation iPad, including lowest-ever prices on M3 iPad Air and M5 iPad Pro, plus steep markdowns on iPad and iPad mini. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a ...
watchos 26 workout app

Apple Watch Users Claim Workout App Is Now Worse in Every Way

Thursday November 20, 2025 7:01 am PST by
Apple Watch owners have been voicing their frustration online over changes to the Workout app that Apple introduced in watchOS 26, with many finding the redesigned interface makes starting exercises difficult and exasperating. When Apple launched watchOS 26 in September, the Workout app went from large, easily tapped workout tiles to a scrolling, corner-button interface. Instead of tapping a ...
applecare apple care banner

Apple Brings New AppleCare+ Options to India

Tuesday November 18, 2025 8:42 am PST by
Apple today announced an expansion of AppleCare+ coverage in India, with new options for monthly and annual plans, and the addition of Theft and Loss for iPhone for the first time. Options for monthly and annual AppleCare+ plans in India provide more choice and flexibility, allowing users to keep coverage for as long as they require. Apple's vice president of Worldwide iPhone Product...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Two More U.S. States Commit to Offering iPhone Driver's Licenses in Apple Wallet App

Thursday November 20, 2025 8:21 am PST by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Apple Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, and then use it to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Earlier this week, Illinois became the 13th state in the U.S. to offer the feature. Subsequently, we shared a list of additional states that are committed...

Top Rated Comments

mattopotamus Avatar
153 months ago
It'll be interesting if Apple produce a device that'll convince me that a watch is a must have.

I never liked wearing watches, even before mobile phones became commonplace. I'd rely on public clocks or time displays on machines to find out the time as I just found watches irritating on my wrist.

Before the iPhone came out I could not think how Apple could improve upon a BlackBerry but as soon as the iPhone was released everything seemed so obvious.

So I'm personally not interested in medical sensors, I'm not interested in a more convenient way to tell the time or interact with my smart phone.

Now Apple - will you make things interesting for me?

Well watches, in recent times, have become more of a fashion statement.

As someone who owns a pebble, I will always own a smartwatch going forward. I get several notifications daily that I need, but do not need to respond to. Not having to pull my phone out to see that notification is a huge benefit!
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
APlotdevice Avatar
153 months ago
I'd rather have a persistent ePaper display that sips battery than an OLED that I'll have to turn on constantly and will still only manage a couple days at most.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacLC Avatar
153 months ago
It'll be interesting if Apple produce a device that'll convince me that a watch is a must have.

I never liked wearing watches, even before mobile phones became commonplace. I'd rely on public clocks or time displays on machines to find out the time as I just found watches irritating on my wrist.

Before the iPhone came out I could not think how Apple could improve upon a BlackBerry but as soon as the iPhone was released everything seemed so obvious.

So I'm personally not interested in medical sensors, I'm not interested in a more convenient way to tell the time or interact with my smart phone.

Now Apple - will you make things interesting for me?
Very well put Dave. That is what one of my former teachers would call healthy skepticism. I as well have little to zero excitement about the iWatch concept and I shared that with some friends who then went off bashing the whole I idea. I reminded them how they thought iPods (later smartphones and tablets) were stupid before they got one. Of course it's "I have been wrong every time but this time I am right!"

You have
desktop > laptop > tablet > smartphone >watch> glass hole
Seems like a lot of overlap. Tablets are already cannibalizing laptop sales despite being less productive (unless you like microtransaction games). Will watches cannibalize smartphone sales? That would be my biggest fear in a world where digital devices are over-saturated.
Well no, my biggest fear would be of teachers forcing students to remove iWatches before tests then students' parents successfully suing because forced-removal of heart rate monitors is a violation of constitutional rights. Public education in the US and Europe is already nigh on meaningless.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Karma*Police Avatar
153 months ago

Naturally many will not 'get it' before actually seeing it, because they can't make enough of a mental leap away from what watches have always been to people. Many had the same doubts about the Macintosh, iPod, iPhone and iPad prior to release...

All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.
- Arthur Schopenhauer

Not surprisingly, Apple's most revolutionary products went through these stages: Mac, iPhone and iPad.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Z8beema Avatar
153 months ago
Oh come on, Apple's supply chain is more holey than a pope gunned down by the mafia while holding a block of Swiss cheese.

Well.... That was quite the analogy
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dave532 Avatar
153 months ago
It'll be interesting if Apple produce a device that'll convince me that a watch is a must have.

I never liked wearing watches, even before mobile phones became commonplace. I'd rely on public clocks or time displays on machines to find out the time as I just found watches irritating on my wrist.

Before the iPhone came out I could not think how Apple could improve upon a BlackBerry but as soon as the iPhone was released everything seemed so obvious.

So I'm personally not interested in medical sensors, I'm not interested in a more convenient way to tell the time or interact with my smart phone.

Now Apple - will you make things interesting for me?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)