JDI to remain top Apple display supplier for iPhone in 2016

Apple will look to Japan Display (JDI) as its main panel maker in 2016, according to media reports in Japan citing industry sources.

Sharp was originally considered a major contender to provide displays to Apple in 2016 but has since been disregarded due to the panel maker's decisions over the last few years to give order priority to China-based vendors. The sources said that over the years Sharp was concerned about Apple orders varying drastically depending on the season, and that it aimed to differentiate its customer base with an emphasis in China. The Japan maker's move led Apple to begin renegotiating with other makers to solidify display supply and JDI was chosen as a major contender for its high-end displays such as In-Cell.

Apple will strengthen its cooperation with JDI for higher-end displays, and is expected to continue doing so into 2016 as plans for the new iPhone have already been laid out, the sources said.

Sharp meanwhile has suffered due to increased production and capacity at China panel makers, and continues to struggle with its overall LCD operations as a result. The panel maker is expected to play a minimal role in Apple's supply chain in 2016 and is also seeing its role in the China market decrease severely.

Heading into 2017 may be a completely different scenario, as Apple is reportedly interested in AMOLED displays, the sources noted. Digitimes recently received information from supply chain sources that Apple has been concerned over production bottlenecks related to In-Cell panels that have prevented the company from increasing the resolution for iPhone devices. The media report from Japan meanwhile reiterated similar concerns but noted Apple is still concerned about AMOLED's lifespan.

Despite that Apple may shift to AMOLED technology, it is still highly unlikely Sharp will make any investments into producing AMOLED panels, as it currently does not have any production equipment and is also incurring losses, which are expected to continue throughout 2015.

Apple is expected to continue exploring other possible solutions such as switching back to G/G technology in order to support higher-end displays but these panels are currently in the early development stage, the supply chain makers added.

The Japan media report did not mention any new developments regarding industry rumors stating Foxconn Electronics will purchase Sharp's LCD business or whether Apple would be included in the purchase.

The 4K smartphone display is here: 5.5-inch Sharp 806ppi super-screen

Thinking of upgrading to a 2K screen soon in the Samsung Galaxy S6? Just know it's already out of date as sharp has come up with a 4K screen.

The Sharp 4K IGZO screen is a 5.5-inch display that has a resolution of 2,160 x 3,840 for a pixel density, Sharp claims, of 806ppi. Yup, that's an entire 4K TV's worth of pixels crammed into a pocket-friendly display.

Samsung showed its screen building road map a while back which had it using 4K screens by 2015, so we may yet see this resolution on sale soon with the Galaxy Note 5.

The question is do we need resolutions so high? Realistically, even at the moment 1440p displays, that are being dubbed 2K, are only marginally better than 1080p to the human eye. When screens are at 5.5-inches or less it's difficult to see the resolution bump, so will 4K screens actually look any better?

One reason for 4K screens could be 4K content. It may help to encourage more people to want 4K content which will, hopefully, make it more readily available. At the moment a pricey 4K TV or monitor seem to be the only ways to draw people into this medium, but even these prices are falling.

So 4K screens are coming, soon. Would you want one? Seeing is believing we suppose so we'll just have to wait to decide.

Japan's Sharp, banks near $1.7 billion bailout deal: source

Japan's Sharp Corp and its main banks are set to agree on Thursday to a $1.7 billion rescue and restructuring plan that will likely include a promise to split off its ailing smartphone display business, a person involved in the discussions said.

As part of its second major bailout in three years, Sharp's lenders, Mizuho Bank and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, will inject a combined 200 billion yen ($1.7 billion) in a debt-for-equity swap, the source said, declining to be identified as he is not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

The loss-making company will also pledge to scale back its North American television operations and cut around 5,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its global workforce, the source said.

The source said the LCD operations, while likely to be split off to improve transparency and accountability, would continue to be owned by Sharp for now.

Haggling over the extent of job cuts and restructuring had held up the talks, with the company initially reluctant to split off the LCD division, which accounts for 30 percent of Sharp's sales, company and banking sources have previously said.Analysts have said splitting off the division could pave the way for a deal such as a merger with rival Japan Display Inc - a possibility which Sharp has denied considering.

While relief that a deal with lenders was in its final stages boosted Sharp's shares 4.5 percent to their highest level since December, the plans are likely to viewed as not going far enough by many investors.

"The restructuring is likely to stop the bleeding in terms of losses and cash flow, but it's not going to resolve the basic problems," said Yasuo Sakuma, executive officer at Bayview Asset Management.

"It's difficult to assess positively since we're not seeing any strategy toward future growth."

Sharp spokeswoman Miyuki Nakayama said the company was considering various options but nothing had been decided, adding that more will be revealed in May, when it releases a new business plan.

Representatives for the lenders declined to comment. Mizuho is a unit of Mizuho Financial Group Inc and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ is part of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.

The parties are unlikely to make any announcement on Thursday after CEO Kozo Takahashi meets with bankers to finalize a deal, the source said.