New iPhone: screen thinner thanks to in-cell technology

The Wall Street Journal has confirmed the rumour that the next iPhone will use an in-cell technology to reduce the thickness of their screens.

The rumours started a few months ago, but the Wall Street Journal has now confirmed that Apple’s next iPhone should call on in-cell technology for their screen, allowing them to slightly reduce its thickness which improving the displays quality.

The newspaper states that Sharp, Japan Display (a conglomerate of mobile screen manufacturers including Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi) and LG Display are Apple’s in-cell screen providers. They have also suggested that the move to multiple providers will assist in simplifying their logistical supply chains by calling on fewer partners.

This is a strategic choice to counter the threat of Samsung’s OLED technology, with the technology company being a partner of Apple’s, although not with the larger screen used on the Galaxy smartphones and Galaxy S III which comes with a 4.8" Super AMOLED display.

Samsung is one of the biggest promoters and providers of OLED screens and has even reorganised their mobile screen manufacturing to be able to separate the OLED activity, which the group directly supervises, from LCD screens which has been spun off to a distinct entity.

 By using the in-cell technology, Apple can benefit from an alternative which will provide their next iPhone with increased space so that the internal components can be reorganised or a larger battery can be provided. The Wall Street Journal also notes that the production of in-cell screens represents a technical challenge for providers as they are difficult to mass produce.

This is also a good occasion to demonstrate that the LCS technology remains capable of competing with OLED. On the other hand, the choice of the in-cell technology, which requires a high degree of technical capacities to produce, excludes current tactile screen manufacturers.