Apple suppliers will start production of 4.7-inch displays for the iPhone 6 in May, Reuters reports, while the 5.5-inch displays for a rumored iPhone phablet have apparently been delayed. Apple is expected to launch the new iPhones in autumn, with a 4.7-inch model “likely to be produced first, while a 5.5-inch version could be delayed.”
For the bigger iPhone 6 models, Apple will use the same in-cell touch technology that was introduced with the iPhone 5, in order to decrease the thickness of the handset. However, it appears that difficulties with in-cell production technology for the larger 5.5-inch iPhone caused delays for the bigger panels, with 5.5-inch display screen production said to start “several months later.”
Reuters also says there’s a possibility for suppliers to shift from in-cell touch panels to film sensors for a 5.5-inch iPhone. A previous report also suggested that the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 may be delayed.
Japan Display will be the first supplier to start production in early May, with Sharp and LG Display set to begin iPhone 6 display production a month later.
Apple has been rumored for quite a while to launch at least two iPhone models this year, with screen sizes bigger than the 4-inch displays available in the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c – however, existing reports do not agree on the size of Apple’s first phablets, which ranges from 4.5-inch to 6-inches depending on the source.
Many concepts, some based on purported leaked schematics, have hit the web trying to guess what Apple’s bigger iPhones may look like.
