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.
Today, an analytical report published by CEO Choong Hoon Yi of UBI Research claims that BOE will likely overtake LG as Apple’s number two OLED display supplier by 2023.
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.
This is level with that of Samsung Display’s current capacity of 140,000 substrates per month. LG Display currently has a capacity of 30,000 substrates per month __ it is aiming to expand this to 45,000 substrates per month for flexible OLED panels and 15,000 substrates per month for rigid OLED panels.
This means in 2023, BOE can aim to overtake LG Display in shipment, he added. 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.
LG has been a solid Apple supplier over the years and LG Innotek has reportedly struck a deal with Apple regarding a next-gen periscope display for a future iPhone. LG and Corning also hold patents for the next-gen ‘Liquid Lens” technology that could be another option for Apple.
