Most iPhone 15 displays will be made by Samsung, after competitors LG and BOE failed to gain Apple approval for their planned initial production.
Samsung is reported to be the only company making displays for the standard iPhone 15, the iPhone 15 Plus, and the iPhone 15 Pro Max …
Apple likes to have multiple suppliers for all major components. This provides resilience against supply problems, and also puts the company in a strong negotiating position on price, as it can threaten to move orders between suppliers.
For the iPhone 15, the company had planned to split display orders between Korean companies Samsung and LG, and China’s BOE.
As early as March, we learned that BOE was having technical problems in manufacturing the displays, with more detail coming to light later the same month.
Chinese manufacturer BOE has reportedly been unable to fix the issues it had in making the iPhone 15 display, with Apple pulling orders from the company for now.
The problem concerns the Dynamic Island cutout for the front camera and Face ID tech. BOE was having problems with the cutout during initial production runs – specifically light leakage around the slot.
That put BOE out of the picture for initial production, with Apple’s planned orders transferred to Samsung.
LG was also set to make displays for both the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max models.
A new supply chain report from The Elec says that LG has also failed to make the cut for iPhone 15 Pro Max displays – but will be making some panels for the smaller iPhone 15 Pro.
Samsung Display is expected to be the biggest beneficiary of the launch of Apple’s iPhone 15. It appears to have secured a de facto monopoly position in the supply of the iPhone 15 display […]
It is analyzed that the amount originally allocated to BOE has been transferred to Samsung Display as its competitor BOE has not received panel approval for the iPhone 15 […] LG Display is currently approved as a Pro model supplier by Apple, and OLED for Pro Max is expected to be approved this month.
While any reduction in suppliers raises the specter of supply constraints, it’s worth remembering that Samsung has at times been the sole supplier of iPhone displays. Given that it has in the past kept up with initial demand for orders, it seems likely that it will do so again.
Photo: Samuel Angor/Unsplash
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Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!