We may see a delay to launch or stock shortage for the iPhone 15 Pro, and especially the iPhone 15 Pro Max because of dodgy displays, so say two sources speaking to The Information.
The new iPhones are being built by Apple's production partner Foxconn, which is currently ramping up production while also checking how well-built the initial batches of iPhone 15 units are. And it's through this testing that some LG-built displays have "failed reliability tests" when being attached to other parts. iPhone 15 displays from Samsung, however, have passed these tests.
Modifications are already being tested to make the LG displays behave, the report continues. But as a result of this setback, it may mean limited availability for the phones at launch, especially for the Pro Max model. Apple could instead decide to delay the launch to try and build more units, but it sounds like it'll try to debut its new phones on time regardless of stock levels
Apparently LG's displays are failing because of a new process Apple's using to make the display's bezels narrower, something we've heard rumors about Apple doing before. Slimmer bezels not only look attractive, but mean you can make the active area of a display larger on the same-sized phone body, or the body smaller while keeping the display the same size.
One of The Information's sources compared this situation to what happened in 2021 with the Apple Watch 7. This model also used new display tech to increase the size of the screen while keeping the same overall chassis as before, and had to be launched later than planned because of assembly issues.
iPhone 15 delays — bad news for Apple and iPhone customers
The Information's reporting matches with another recent account from an analyst claiming we may see a delay in the iPhone 15's launch. That initial claim didn't give an explanation why, but perhaps it was based on the same details we're now hearing about Apple's display troubles.
A stock shortage or delay of any sort for the iPhone 15 series would be unfortunate given the rumors we've heard so far. For one, Apple's apparently brought its usual manufacturing timetable forward and ordered extra parts early in an attempt to avoid shortages. And while Apple is going to sell millions of iPhones regardless of when the launch is, having the iPhone 15 launch in a different quarter of the financial year, or having sales stymied by a lack of supply, could affect Apple's stock performance, as The Information's article explores further.
But for iPhone 15 buyers, delays or shortages would be annoying because of how many big upgrades are tipped to be coming this year, especially for the Pro models. The iPhone 15 Pro Max is set to get a feature all to itself in the form of a periscope telephoto camera that can zoom in further than previous iPhones, while it and the iPhone 15 Pro should be getting a new 3nm chipset that allows greater and more efficient performance. All iPhone 15 models, including the non-Pros, are said to use the Dynamic Island notch introduced on the iPhone 14 Pro last year, and will use USB-C charging ports for the first time.
