Disappointing iPhone X sales leaves Samsung searching for OLED buyers

[midian182]

One would imagine that Apple cutting production of the iPhone X in half due to weak sales would give rival Samsung a feeling of schadenfreude, but that might not be the case. The Korean firm provides the OLED displays for the flagship phone, and now that Apple has lowered iPhone X orders, Samsung is trying to find new buyers for its surplus of OLED panels.

Nikkei reports that Samsung increased OLED production to meet the expected demand for the iPhone X, but the pricey device hasn’t sold as well as expected, leaving the Galaxy maker with the need to find new buyers. The publication says Samsung hoped other phone companies would make the switch to OLED, but the technology's high price has seen many stay with cheaper LCD displays.

"Production of the iPhone X, whose sales have been sluggish, is expected to drop by half in the first 3 months of this year from the initial estimate of over 40 million units," said the report.

Another problem for Samsung is the competition from Chinese OLED makers, who are expanding their production capacity and forcing down the prices of OLED screens.

At around $100 per unit, including the touch sensors, OLED panels are still around twice the price of their LCD counterparts—it’s one of the reasons why the iPhone X is so expensive. In China, the world’s largest smartphone market, midrange devices are incredibly popular, and phone companies don’t want to risk losing customers by passing the cost of OLED screens on to them. Nikkei notes that only 5-10 percent of smartphones made by Chinese giants Oppo and Vivo use OLED panels.

As if all this wasn’t bad enough for Samsung, reports say it will soon lose its grip on the OLED market, of which it controls over 95 percent. Chinese manufacturers are set to increase production of OLEDs, as is LG Display, which will reportedly be supplying the OLED panels for the upcoming 6.5-inch iPhone.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/73339-disappointing-iphone-x-sales-leaves-samsung-searching-oled.html

 

[nismo91]

Finally. more crowds are saying no to spend >$1000 on a smartphone.

and yes. I am a cheapskate, I love getting last-gen flagship for $300 or so.

 

[Humza]

Finally. more crowds are saying no to spend >$1000 on a smartphone.

and yes. I am a cheapskate, I love getting last-gen flagship for $300 or so.

You're definitely no cheapskate. Sensible is more appropriate. $1000 for a phone is ridiculous.

 

[VitalyT]

Apple has priced themselves out, even out of the profit. That's what corporate greed does.

 

[Jamlad]

What I'm taking from this is that Samsung are the leading competitor to Apple in the cellphone market *and* they're suppling the screens to Apple. So either way they get a cut from the pie.

That's so pretty good business strategy.

 

[Badvok]

"it’s one of the reasons why the iPhone X is so expensive" - no it's not. The ONLY reason the iPhone X is the price it is is because that is what Apple decided to sell it at. BOM isn't even a factor with their target margins.

 

[Shadowboxer]

I hugely prefer Apple to Android but I wouldn’t buy an X. It’s too small. I prefer the breadth of the 8 plus. If they made a 10 plus I would def buy that.

The whole price thing is getting silly, a Note 8 is like £879 and will resell for less than an iPhone X in 2 years when the contract is up, to me, the difference between these two phones prices are negligible. Although I’d if someone held a gun to my head and made me buy an Android phone I’d choose the oneplus5T.

 

[Ean Mogg]

I'd by a new phone when they put on it which makes it worthwhile and I still use a Motorola Defy mini it phones people and it texts them as well I don't use it for anything else much but I do wish they made a modern phone as Shockproof, Dustproof and Waterproof as my phone oh and one that can fit in my bloody pocket, if I need to damage my eyes (proven) I'd watch a movie or tv on a screen that I can't see as well, I'd buy a phone the can better my last phone but as above nothing has been available since then, am I being picky or what lol

 

[JaredTheDragon]

I'd by a new phone when they put on it which makes it worthwhile and I still use a Motorola Defy mini it phones people and it texts them as well I don't use it for anything else much but I do wish they made a modern phone as Shockproof, Dustproof and Waterproof as my phone oh and one that can fit in my bloody pocket, if I need to damage my eyes (proven) I'd watch a movie or tv on a screen that I can't see as well, I'd buy a phone the can better my last phone but as above nothing has been available since then, am I being picky or what lol

That is today's, "Worst sentence on the Internet." Good work, buddy!

 

[trparky]

I hugely prefer Apple to Android but I wouldn’t buy an X. It’s too small. I prefer the breadth of the 8 plus. If they made a 10 plus I would def buy that.

Me too, I prefer the iPhone to anything Android as well. I didn't buy the X either, heck... I'm still rocking my year old iPhone 7 Plus and it's still working just fine for what I need it to do and since it's still receiving iOS updates I don't worry. I'll wait until the iPhone 8s or whatever they're going to call it. This time around the hardware changes just weren't enough to make me move.

 

[DelJo63]

I hugely prefer Apple to Android but I wouldn’t buy an X. It’s too small. I prefer the breadth of the 8 plus.

I use an iPad for screen size - - my iPhone 5Se is just right for my pocket and when out-n-about - - after all IT'S A PORTABLE device, not a visual walkman for videos.

 

[MoeJoe]

LMAO at the iPwn X... and Samsung for being attached at the hip.

 

[c7p89]

Why does Samsung make OLED screens for phones but not for tv’s?

 

[Ean Mogg]

I'd by a new phone when they put on it which makes it worthwhile and I still use a Motorola Defy mini it phones people and it texts them as well I don't use it for anything else much but I do wish they made a modern phone as Shockproof, Dustproof and Waterproof as my phone oh and one that can fit in my bloody pocket, if I need to damage my eyes (proven) I'd watch a movie or tv on a screen that I can't see as well, I'd buy a phone the can better my last phone but as above nothing has been available since then, am I being picky or what lol

That is today's, "Worst sentence on the Internet." Good work, buddy!

OMG did I write this lol .....sorry guys ..they say you shouldn't comment on a subject when your angry or drunk and I wasn't angry lol embarrassed lol

 

[vhfan]

I just use a cheap Trac fone thingee , pay by the minute . I'm lucky I never get any calls which I love , if my phone rings I know it's a wrong # .

I probably make one or two calls every other month to order a pizza or something , works good for that .

 

[batmang]

Disappointing? Maybe the expectations were a lot higher than what was realistic, but to say the sales are disappointing is a bit.. misleading. I've seen more iPhone 7/8 and X's in the wild than I have seen Samsung devices, this holds true from my experience in the last 5 years. I frequent airports quite a bit for work from what I see phone wise, Apple devices are always the majority.

For the iPhone X specifically, it might not be hitting the sales mark Apple and Samsung predicted, but I wouldn't be surprised if more people bought iPhone X's than Samsung S8 devices following the months the iPhone X got released.

Per Apple's quarterly report, it is clear they are selling all kinds of devices, including the iPhone X.

https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2018/02/apple-reports-first-quarter-results/

https://www.recode.net/2018/2/1/16959284/apple-iphone-x-fiscal-december-q1-2018-earnings-preview

90+ Billion in sales.... and that somehow translate to the iPhone X doing poorly (When a decent portion of that was from the iPhone X sales)?

That is laughable.