Samsung is boosting production capacity of OLED panels destined for iPhone 8 by sevenfold

Seven of Samsung Display’s sixth-generation manufacturing plants will increase production capacity of OLEDs destined for iPhone 8 by sevenfold from 15,000 panels per month from last year to 105,000 panels per month this year.

According to a report Friday by ETNews, Samsung Display executives earlier this month finished inspecting the seven production lines that churn out OLED panels for iPhone 8.

The plants are going to operate on full scale, indicating iPhone 8 may arrive on time and that potential customers should be able to get their hands on the device when it launches.

A single OLED panel contains enough material to cut several iPhone 8-sized screens. At 105,000 panels per month, the South Korean conglomerate could theoretically produce a total of 130 million units of 5.8-inch OLED screens for iPhone 8 per annum.

This is Samsung Display’s sixth-generation manufacturing plant, dubbed “A3”, solely dedicated to producing energy-efficient OLED panels for iPhone 8.

That number is on the high side and assumes a yield rate of 100 percent, which is impossible to achieve. As OLED panels are still challenging to produce in volume, the actual yield on Samsung-made OLEDs for iPhone 8 should hover at or slightly above the 60 percent mark.

In comparison, Samsung Display’s production yield rate on OLED panels for Samsung Electronics’ devices like the latest Galaxy S8 is about 80 percent.

At an operation rate of 100 percent and a 60 percent yield, Samsung should be able to produce about 75 million six-inch OLEDs and 79 million 5.8-inch units for iPhone 8, respectively.

The South Korean conglomerate is also investing big money in converting its existing LCD factories into OLED-making plants to help it fulfill Apple orders.

iPhone 8 dummy unit via OnLeaks and Tiger Mobiles