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iPad Pro could arrive later this year, with a little help from Sharp and Samsung

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The iPad Pro could delay the iPad Air, cancel the iPad mini.
The iPad Pro is on its way.
Photo: CURVED

Apple is turning to both long-time manufacturing partner Sharp and long-time “frenemy” Samsung to help build the displays for its eagerly-anticipated 12.9-inch giant-sized iPad Pro, according to a new report.

Sharp is said to have provided a small test batch of the enormous 264ppi, 2,732×2,048 displays in June, which met with Apple’s high production standards. However, Cupertino is also said to have given Samsung a back-up role building screen panels — suggesting that Apple is expecting big things with this next-gen device. Pun intended.

Sharp moves to pry iPhone display plant from Apple

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Back in 2012, Sharp’s Kameyama Plant No. 1 switched from making larger TV panels to smaller screens for smartphones. Apple became a key partner, and now the plant is at 90% capacity making displays for the iPhone 6.

You’d think that such strong business would keep Sharp happy, but that isn’t stopping the Japanese company from wanting to distance itself from Apple. The main thing Apple seems to be concerned with is that Sharp could end up doing business with Samsung instead.

Sharp is dedicating an entire LCD plant to Apple

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iPad screenmaker Sharp is allocating a major chunk of its LCD production facilities to Apple — but doesn’t seem all that happy about it.

According to an interview published Monday with Sharp Senior Executive Managing Officer Norikazu Hoshi, the company worries about what it means for the entire output of the Japanese display maker’s Kameyama No. 1 plant to go “to just one company (Apple).”

New Apple Hires Could Help Create The Retina MacBook Air

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Photo: Apple
Photo: Apple

It seems like we’ve been crowing for years about the promise of IGZO — a display technology that radically improves power efficiency, allowing for thinner, lighter, longer-lasting devices — for ages, but with the iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina Display, Apple finally started actually delivering on that promise.

But what now? A new job application suggests that the next generation of Mac laptops might get IGZO too, paving the way for new design possibilities.

Apple Briefly Sells 4K Sharp Display In European Online Stores

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Once it was revealed that the new Mac Pro could power up to three 4K displays at once, speculation immediately followed about Apple releasing an updated Thunderbolt Display. Rumors have been scare on that front, and a recent slip up in Apple’s online store indicates that the company may be looking to other manufacturers to supply 4K displays.

Yesterday Apple briefly sold Sharp’s new 32-inch LED monitor in several of its European online stores. After the product was spotted, Apple pulled the listing.

Supply Chain Sources Confirm New iPad Mini Will Be In Short Supply At Launch

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We’ve already heard that the new iPad mini may be in short supply at launch due to low yield rates of its Retina display, and that has now been confirmed by supply chain sources in Taiwan. Sharp and LG Display simply cannot produce the panels fast enough, according to reports, and so Apple may not have enough units to meet the initial demand later this month.

Sharp Is Bringing A Multitouch 4K Retina Display To The Mac

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Admit it. There’s two major things you still want from OS X: multitouch support, and 4K support. 4K support would make the Retina iMac finally possible, and as for multitouch, this is where the laptop and desktop market is heading despite Steve Jobs’s protestations about “gorilla arm.”

It’s taking Apple its sweet time to deliver the above, but you don’t have to wait. Sharp has just announced OS X compatibility for their 32-inch 4K touchscreen monitor.

WSJ: Apple’s Next iPad Mini Will ‘Likely’ Have A Retina Display

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Will it or won’t it have a Retina display?

That’s the big question everyone is asking about the second-generation iPad mini, and we’ve been seeing conflicting reports about it for several months. But according to sources “familiar with the matter,” who have been speaking to The Wall Street Journal, it’s “likely” the answer to that question is yes.

Next iPad Will Feature New Touch Technology To Help Make It Thinner & Lighter [Rumor]

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Apple’s fifth-generation iPad will feature a new touchscreen technology that will help it become thinner and lighter, according to industry sources. The device is expected to adopt a new form factor much like the iPad mini’s, with thinner bezels and a smaller frame — and Apple will have to make a number of changes to its internals to enable that.

Apple Drops AUO As Display Supplier For iPad Mini 2

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Will you be upgrading?
Will you be upgrading?

As Apple begins to line up suppliers for the production of the iPad mini 2 – that may or may not have a retina display – ET Newsmac reports that AUO has been dropped by Apple as a display supplier for the iPad mini 2.

AUO provided displays for the original iPad mini, but according the to report, the Taiwanese display supplier could not secure any orders from Apple for the iPad mini 2 because it failed to meet the supply deadlines or to develop an LCD with high penetration rate.

Samsung Unveils New High-Res Display With Higher PPI Than Retina 13-Inch MacBook Pro

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It was just last Fall that Apple announced the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display but Apple is already facing some competition from the likes of Google’s  Chromebook Pixel and now Samsung is getting in on the game.

This morning Samsung announced that it is manufacturing a 13.3-inch display that will have higher pixel densities than both the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro and the Chromebook Pixel.

Foxconn Prepares For Life After Apple

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iPhone 6 maker Foxconn is looking to lower its reliance on Apple.
iPhone 6 maker Foxconn is looking to lower its reliance on Apple.

Foxconn has been forced to make preparations for life after Apple following reduced demand for the iPhone and other iOS devices which has caused the company’s revenue to nosedive, The New York Times reports.

The manufacturer has been doing well off the back of Apple’s hugely successful devices in recent years, which have been contributing at least 40% of its revenue, according to analyst estimates. But after suffering a 19.2% drop in revenue during the first quarter of the year, thanks to declining iPhone and iPad orders, Foxconn is now looking at ways in which it can be less reliant on Apple.

Redesigned Backlighting Could Be Behind iPad 5’s New Thinner, Lighter Design

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Apple could introduce a redesigned backlighting system to the fifth-generation iPad to help make the device thinner and lighter, according to NDP DisplaySearch. The Cupertino company will have to make significant changes if it is to bring the iPad mini’s sleek and slim form factor to its bigger brother, and this is one of the areas in which it could reduce bulk.

Samsung Secures Sharp LCD Supply With $112 Million Investment

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Sharp has this morning announced a ¥10.4 billion ($112 million) investment from Samsung that will provide the latter with a 3% stake in the company. It makes Samsung the biggest individual shareholder in the Japanese display maker, and secures its access to Sharp’s LCD panel supplies.

The investment comes at a time when Sharp has been struggling. The company received a $4.4 billion bailout from the banks in October 2012, and its iPad display orders from Apple were recently cut as consumer demand shifted to the smaller iPad mini, which Sharp is not involved with.

iPad Supplier Sharp’s Investment Talks With Foxconn May Die On March 26th Without Deal

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The success of the iPhone and iPad was supposed to do great things for Sharp. As Apple’s profits have gone up, Sharp has seen an increased amount of orders from Cupertino as Apple tries to distance itself from buying supplies from Samsung.

Even though Sharp supplies Apple with displays for the iPad and iPhone, their stock price has been falling lately, and its investment deal with Foxconn might be in jeopardy.

iPad 5 To Look Just Like iPad Mini, Low-Cost iPhone Coming To China In 2013 [Report]

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Apple’s fifth-generation iPad is expected to finally ditch the existing design and adopt a new form factor that’s said to be much like the iPad mini’s, according to a new report that has surfaced today. A physical model of the device indicates it will be significantly smaller in almost every way, with virtually no bezel down the sides of the display.

As for the iPhone 5S, that’s expected to be very similar to the iPhone 5 — as you may have guessed; while Apple’s new low-cost iPhone, which will reportedly launch some time this year, will be built with China Mobile’s 700 million customers in mind.

iPad Display Production ‘Nearly Halted’ As Demand Shifts To iPad Mini [Report]

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Sharp has “nearly halted” its production of 9.7-inch iPad displays as consumers shift their demand towards the smaller iPad mini, Reuters reports. Sources familiar with Sharp’s plans have claimed that production of the larger panels at Sharp’s Kameyama plant in central Japan has fallen to the “minimal level” this month following a gradual slowdown that began at the end of 2012.

The news follows speculation that the iPad mini has been “cannibalizing” sales of the larger model since its debut last November.