According to a story from The Elec, Chinese display maker Beijing Oriental Electronics (BOE) may lose 30 million display orders for the future iPhone 14 because it purportedly changed the design of the iPhone 13's display to enhance yield rate, or the manufacturing of non-defective goods (via 9to5Mac).
Apple tasked BOE with producing iPhone 13 screens in October, a brief partnership that ended earlier this month after Apple allegedly found BOE changing the circuit width of the iPhone 13's thin-film transistors without Apple's knowledge. (Did they truly believe Apple wouldn't notice?
According to The Elec, BOE dispatched an official to Apple's Cupertino headquarters to explain the matter, and the company claims it did not get an order to manufacture iPhone 14 screens. Apple is anticipated to unveil the iPhone 14 at an event this autumn, but The Elec reports that production for its display might begin as soon as next month.
Instead of BOE, The Elec anticipates Apple to split the 30 million display purchase between its two key display manufacturers, LG and Samsung Displays. Samsung is expected to manufacture the 6.1-inch and 6.7-inch displays for the next iPhone 14 Pro, while LG is expected to manufacture the 6.7-inch display for the iPhone 14 Pro Max.
BOE historically solely made screens for reconditioned iPhones, according to MacRumors. Apple later engaged the startup to supply OLED screens for the upcoming iPhone 12 in 2020, but the company's first batch of panels failed Apple's stringent quality control testing. A display driver chip scarcity has also hampered BOE's manufacturing since the beginning of this year.
