Apple Drops BOE iPhone Displays After Discovering Unexpected Design Changes

Apple has virtually cut Chinese display manufacturer BOE out of the iPhone 13's supply chain after discovering design changes to its OLED panels, The Elec reports.

iPhone 13 Face ID
BOE has been supplying OLED display panels for 6.1-inch ‌iPhone‌ models since last year, but the company has only manufactured a "meager amount" of OLED panels for the ‌iPhone‌ since February, according to The Elec. Panel production volume is said to have "plummeted over the past four months."

The initial reason for a dip in production output was a shortage of display driver Integrated Circuits (ICs), since IC supplier LX Semicon prioritized LG Display's orders. More significantly, BOE reportedly changed the design of its OLED panels by expanding the circuit width of thin-film transistors. The Elec claims that when Apple discovered the change, it told BOE to halt production.

Nevertheless, BOE is unlikely to be excluded from Apple's OLED panel supply chain going forward because its presence puts pressure on Samsung Display and LG Display to be more competitive and cut prices. BOE's factory in Sichuan is said to still be operational, and it is possible that BOE is currently working on a workaround to meet Apple's requirements.

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 company has been planning a significant expansion to overtake LG Display as one of Apple's main suppliers of ‌iPhone‌ displays in 2023.

Tags: BOE, The Elec

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
iOS 19 Mock WWDC25 Feature

iOS 19 Expected to Run on These iPhones

Monday March 31, 2025 5:28 pm PDT by
iOS 19 will not be available on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or the iPhone XS Max, according a private account on social media site X that has accurately provided information on device compatibility in the past. The iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max all have an A12 Bionic chip, so it looks like iOS 19 will discontinue support for that chip. All other iPhones that run iOS 18 are expected...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4

Monday March 31, 2025 11:27 am PDT by
Apple today released new firmware updates for all AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2 models. The new firmware is version 7E93, up from the 7B21 firmware that was installed on the AirPods Pro 2 and the 7B20 firmware available on the AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC. It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in the new firmware, but we'll update this article should we find ...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.4 With Mail Categorization and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15. With...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
watchOS 11 Thumb 2 1

Apple Releases watchOS 11.4 With Sleep Alarm Update

Tuesday April 1, 2025 10:34 am PDT by
Apple today released watchOS 11.4, the fourth major update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.4 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2. watchOS 11.4 can be downloaded on a connected iPhone by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software,...

Top Rated Comments

coolfactor Avatar
38 months ago
Changing specifications behind a client's back to reduce operating costs? That's a big no-no.
Score: 42 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Stunning_Sense4712 Avatar
38 months ago

Not all Chinese manufacturers are bad. The reason why China got a reputation for cheap products had nothing to do with Chinese people or corporations but an American corporation specifically one that wanted the cheapest possible items and bought it in bulk to sell at an extreme markup. 60 years later they’re still doing this.
I disagree. China is known for dodgy practices in general. You have them manufactoring dangerous knock off chargers, selling questionable batteries, stealing IP, selling equipment that failed QC or a device that was supposed to be destroyed, and making design/material changes without approval.
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Solomani Avatar
38 months ago

Changing specifications behind a client's back to reduce operating costs? That's a big no-no.
A Chinese supplier cutting corners. Color me shocked! Shocked!
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nathan_reilly Avatar
38 months ago

Not all Chinese manufacturers are bad. The reason why China got a reputation for cheap products had nothing to do with Chinese people or corporations but an American corporation specifically one that wanted the cheapest possible items and bought it in bulk to sell at an extreme markup. 60 years later they’re still doing this.
yeah, of course, the reason China bad is really America bad.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
russell_314 Avatar
38 months ago

What does Apple expect from a Chinese manufacturer that is par the course.
Not all Chinese manufacturers are bad. The reason why China got a reputation for cheap products had nothing to do with Chinese people or corporations but an American corporation specifically one that wanted the cheapest possible items and bought it in bulk to sell at an extreme markup. 60 years later they’re still doing this.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bassexpander Avatar
38 months ago

Not all Chinese manufacturers are bad. The reason why China got a reputation for cheap products had nothing to do with Chinese people or corporations but an American corporation specifically one that wanted the cheapest possible items and bought it in bulk to sell at an extreme markup. 60 years later they’re still doing this.
I live in Asia. Been here for 20 years. If you don’t run your own QC (Apple obviously does) then many of the locals in China feel as if they’ve achieved something spectacular if they can get away with dropping quality midway, to pocket more money. It’s an endemic problem in Asia, and many, many foreign companies learned the hard way.

US manufacturers once took great pride in “a job well done.” Japanese manufacturers are about perfection. Germans will over-engineer a product to amazing specs. But Chinese will wheel and deal in a lightning fashion, then pull the rug out from under quality and feel absolutely giddy if they can get away with giving less than was ordered. Proud, in fact.

Of course, there are companies who have learned long term gains are better than short term cheats. Juggernauts like Apple will give their business to the first group, and dump the rest like a bad habit.

It’s not racist to call this out. China is not a race. It is a cultural issue they have been changing (but it still exists). Korea was once this way, but it has become a world leader in tech, and they are darned proud of it.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)