Amid rumors about Apple's custom-designed modem for its 2023 iPhone lineup, a new report today suggested that the display panels destined for these models could put substantial pressure on LG Display's market share.
According to research by UBI, seen by The Elec, BOE is converting three of its factories into facilities capable of manufacturing OLED panels for Apple. Until now, BOE has manufactured OLED panels for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 at two factories in China, accounting for just 10 percent of all iPhone displays in 2021, but the significant expansion will reportedly allow the company to overtake LG Display as one of Apple's main suppliers of iPhone displays in 2023.
By the fourth quarter of 2022, BOE will expand to reach a manufacturing capacity of 144,000 substrates per month, up from just 96,000 currently. This will exceed Samsung Display's current manufacturing capacity of 140,000 substrates per month, positioning BOE as a serious competitor.
BOE taking a larger share of the supply of iPhone displays could pose a particular threat to LG Display since Apple is its only client for Gen 6 OLED panels, unlike Samsung Display and BOE, which both have a range of other customers and are generally more competitive.
The expansion could spell more bad news for LG after it halted production of LCD displays for iPhones and shut down its own smartphone division entirely earlier this year.
This week, additional reports about Apple's custom-designed 5G modem emerged, explaining that it will be separate from the company's A-series chip and is set to debut in iPhones as soon as 2023. These models could also feature no notch or hole-punch out of the display, an under-display Touch ID fingerprint scanner, and a periscope camera system.
