In-Cell Displays May Be Culprit in iPhone 5 Shortage

[Michael Essany]

Although no one feels bad for Apple about its record opening weekend of new iPhone sales, reports are surfacing that Apple may have been able to sell more than five million units of the new iPhone 5 so far if not for the cumbersome supply constraints presently hobbling the iDevice maker.

The culprit in the shortage is now thought to be Apple's in-cell displays, which help make the iPhone lighter and thinner, while preserving the remarkable clarity of the display screen.

“This is like the opening weekend for the summer blockbuster movie,” said Tom Dinges, senior principal analyst at IHS ISuppli. “They needed to get a lot of products in the door during a tight window, and these supply constraints that were talked about probably did have some impact.”

A report from Bloomberg Tuesday presents the suspicion that only about 10 million units of in-cell panels will be available in the calendar third quarter. And that could spell big trouble for Apple and frustrated customers who can't get their hands on the new iPhone.

“Apple is facing significant production constraints due to a move toward in-cell display technology,” Ben Reitzes, an analyst at Barclays, said Monday. “Apple is struggling to keep up with demand.”

Source: Bloomberg

[repoman16]

i hate to say it, but this could be good for them. we all know how the wii played out with having such a low availability. everyone wanted one but couldn't get one. not saying this is as drastic, but it will just make people that cant get one want it even more. i know people who were so excited to get wii's, then watched them collect dust after the first week.

[The6uest]

Is there really that much of a shortage? They can only make so many at a time and the demand is high even with the issues.

[peacedog]

I say let's blame it on the 2,000 Foxconn employee riot.

[LUFT5_THOR]

I say blame it on the thousands of returns for sub par manufacturing processes.

[Roadw3]

I have the i5 and this shortage is getting me to rethink it. Maybe I should just resell the two I bought for a "small" profit and wait for them to come available again. This is a tough decision.

[hogcia]

I bet apple would love to have Samsung helping with the manufacturing of the displays, oh well too late!