AU Optronics and LG to produce iPad mini screens

Apple is expected to launch its next iPad with a smaller screen size. A report by Bloombergsheds light on the situation by claiming that LG Displays and AU Optronics will produce the display for this diminutive tablet from Apple. The report by Bloomberg states, “Apple Inc. will use screens from AU Optronics Corp. and LG Display Co. for a smaller version of the iPad to be released in October, according to four people familiar with the plans. TPK Holding Co. and Yeh Cheng Technology, a subsidiary of Foxconn Technology Group, will supply the lamination coating for the device that will measure 7.85 inches diagonally, said the people, who declined to be identified because the plans haven’t been made public. Current iPads measure 9.7 inches”. The display suppliers have been named Apple is the market leader when it comes to tablets. However, it is has been losing its share in this segment to the likes of Amazon with its Kindle Fire, and Google with its Nexus 7 tablet. For Apple to stay in the run and cater to a customer base that would want a smaller tablet, Apple would have to launch a 7-inch tablet to cement its throne as the leading tablet manufacturer. The Google Nexus 7 tablet is faring exceedingly well in the market and rumours suggest that a 3G version of the tablet may also be in the works. As far as Amazon is concerned, the Kindle Fire slate is already around a year old, and the brand is expected to launch a refreshed version of the slate on September 6. Apple would need to step into this segment to battle the increasing competition from other manufacturers. Speculating on the competition at hand, while the prices of the Nexus 7 and the Kindle Fire are similar, the Nexus 7 seems to be the device of choice as it comes with beefier hardware along with access to Android v4.1 (Jelly Bean) as well as future Android releases, as opposed to the Kindle Fire’s Android v2.3 (Gingerbread). However, Apple has its own iOS operating system. When it does announce the iPad mini, it will most likely launch it with iOS 6 straight out of the box.  The report goes on to mention, “A smaller iPad order could boost sales at AUO, Taiwan’s second-largest flat-panel maker, with Apple selling five times as many iPads as MacBooks, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. LG Display and TPK are already suppliers for Apple’s handheld devices, which include the iPhone and iPad. Yeh Cheng, a maker of touch-screen sensors and lamination, was spun off from Chimei Innolux earlier this year and sold to Hon Hai, said Chimei Innolux spokesman C.H. Lin. That division began supplying sensors for the iPad 2 last year”.

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