BOE Will Be Apple's Second-Largest OLED Supplier, Only Behind Samsung

Over the years, Apple has sought to reduce its dependence on components supplied by rival Samsung to its devices. If a recent newsletter is credible, then the Cupertino-based giant seems ready to take a remarkable new step for the iPhone 2020 lineup.

Accordingly, BOE is likely to join Samsung and LG Display as suppliers of OLED panels for iPhones launched next year - and the move is clearly a double win for the company.

First and foremost, with BOE joining the game, Apple will expand the list of component suppliers for iPhones, which means that component shortages will be less likely to occur. And secondly, signing a contract with BOE means Apple can reduce its dependence on Samsung, a long-time rival from South Korea that has been taking over the supply of most screens for the iPhone, but at the same time compete with iPhone with its own flagship Android-powered lineup.

Going All In On OLED

BOE's participation in the OLED panel supply chain for iPhones is not really surprising news since the company has been an LCD panel manufacturer for iPads and MacBooks since 2017. The expansion into the supply of OLED screens could help BOE grow stronger, especially after it partnered with Huawei last year to produce OLED panels for the Huawei Mate 20.

According to a new report, BOE will produce about 45 million flexible OLED panels for the iPhone next year, while the number of orders that Apple sends to Samsung will decrease from 230 million to 150 million units. This is clearly a loss of Samsung when Apple will also order LG Display to produce 26 million panels for the iPhone.

The iPhone 2020 lineup that will launch next fall is expected to feature OLED screens only - LCD iPhone models are expected in the spring, possibly the second-generation iPhone SE. The successor to the iPhone 11, which is currently using an LCD screen, will also switch to using the OLED screen entirely.