Putting Samsung and LG on Alert
China's BOE is busy expanding its business areas after entering Apple's supply chain. BOE’s move will inevitably affect Samsung Display and LG Display.
BOE is preparing to supply OLED panels for the iPhone 13. In the fourth quarter of 2020, BOE started supplying OLED panels to Apple. It was allowed to provide displays for refurbished iPhone 12 models.
BOE set up Fab B11 in Menyang exclusively for Apple and launched efforts to expand its OLED panel supply to the U.S. client. Fab B11 is currently manufacturing samples of iPhone 13 panels.
Apple added LG Display as a supplier of smartphone OLED panels after exclusively relying on Samsung Display. By adding BOE, Apple now has three OLED panel suppliers. Industry experts expect that Apple will cut order amounts to the Korean display makers.
"Apple has decided to apply a low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) thin film transistor (TFT) to some models starting from the iPhone 13,” said an industry insider. “This is positive for Korean companies. But I expect that BOE will win orders starting from the iPhone 14 at the latest.”
BOE is also targeting Apple's virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) devices. Micro OLED panels will go into Apple’s VR and AR products. Micro OLED panels are manufactured with silicon substrates. Korean companies are not engaged in the micro OLED business.