Apple is reportedly preparing one of the most ambitious iPhone projects to date – a phone with a screen that bends on all four sides without visible edges and without the classic optical deformations that plague curved OLED panels today.
According to information from Korean ETNews, Apple requires Samsung Display and LG Display to develop a completely new OLED technology based on IZO (Indium Zinc Oxide) cathodes, which caused huge changes within the production lines of both manufacturers.
Apple wants an iPhone screen without any compromises
Unlike many Android phones that have been using curved screens for years with visible image distortion at the edges, Apple reportedly refuses to accept such compromises. The company’s goal is a completely “all-screen” iPhone, where the screen will go over all four edges of the device at the same time, practically erasing the border between the frame and the screen.
The problem arises because the optical distortion increases drastically when the OLED panel is bent on several sides at the same time. This is precisely why Apple insists on new IZO cathodes that let in more light and reduce image distortion on curved parts of the screen.
However, the production of such panels requires a completely new generation of TCO sputtering equipment, which the existing OLED factories practically do not have. For this reason, LG Display has already launched investments worth about 770 million dollars for new infrastructure, while Samsung is still evaluating whether it will open special production lines exclusively for the Apple project.
Apple is apparently preparing an anniversary iPhone
Industry sources claim that Apple is developing this technology for a future 20-year anniversary iPhone, but there is a big problem with the development timeline. Namely, information suggests that the first “all-screen” iPhone could arrive as early as 2027, while full IZO OLED technology probably won’t be ready before 2028.
This practically raises the question of whether Apple will have to make a compromise and launch the first model with partially unfinished curved screen technology. However, history shows that Apple very rarely releases products before it judges that the technology is mature enough for the mass market.
That’s why this project already seems like one of the most expensive and complex OLED transitions in the history of the smartphone industry, reports Digitaltrends.