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Rumor: iPhone 8 could be in rare supply until early 2018 following manufacturing difficulties

Apple’s “iPhone 8”, complete with an edge-to-edge OLED display and facial recognition, may be a bit hard to get a hold of for a while following “extended supply shortfalls and shipping delays,” as reported by The Wall Street Journal.

The production problems have led to a setback of “about a month” in Apple’s manufacturing timetable, but Apple supplier Foxconn is ramping up development and working to hire new employees.

The report supports a statement made months ago by KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who stated that iPhone 8 units would be in rare supply until early 2018. Other rumors have pointed towards problems with the display lamination process and other high-tech components like the 3D sensor embedded at the front of the device.


It’s also been stated that the OLED assembly proved a major reason for the delays.

Per one source:

Apple and its suppliers also ran into trouble manufacturing the OLED displays. The display modules are being produced in Vietnam by an affiliate of Samsung Electronics. Unlike the OLED display module in Samsung’s own smartphones, in which the display and touch panel are integrated, iPhone’s display module has the touch panel outside of the display, according to a person familiar with the technology.

The iPhone manufacturing process requires more steps and more layers of adhesive and protective film than are involved in Samsung’s manufacturing process, the person familiar with the process said, creating a greater risk of manufacturing error.

Apple apparently also wanted to incorporate Touch ID into the display of the new device, a task that “proved difficult” and may have lead Apple to abandon its fingerprint sensor and thus lose valuable development time during the project.

Customers hoping to get an iPhone 8 as soon as possible will want to pre-order the device right when it goes on sale. It’s not entirely clear yet if the iPhone 8 will be available shortly after being introduced on September 12 or if the supply issues will lead Apple to delay shipments beyond September.

Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.

Via MacRumors and The Wall Street Journal