Apple's iPhone Duo has gone on sale, with pre-orders in several key markets reportedly exceeding the company's expectations. Delivery dates have stretched to late 2026 and even early 2027. The strong initial response could partly offset weaker-than-expected sales momentum for the iPhone 18 Pro series, pointing to growing consumer interest in foldable smartphones.
LG Display's large OLED business is shifting its growth from televisions to PC monitors, and the change is now large enough for the company to plan restarting idle factory capacity. Its automotive business is moving the other way. War, inflation, and a slowdown in European electric vehicles have weakened demand for its car OLED panels, leaving older low-temperature polycrystalline silicon LCD (LTPS-LCD) technology as the steadier earner.
LG Display expects foldable smartphones to grow faster than the market had forecast. That outlook carries a complication: the company reportedly does not make folding phone screens. On its third-quarter earnings call on October 22, Seung-ryong Baek, vice president for small display planning, said a customer's new foldable had drawn growing interest since pre-orders opened on October 16.
LG Display (LGD) returned to an operating profit in the third quarter of 2026, showing how far its OLED shift now drives earnings, and how little room it leaves when currency and component costs turn against it. Operating profit was KRW250.6 billion (approx. US$188.96 million), compared with a loss in the second quarter, on revenue of KRW6.28 trillion, up 12% from the previous quarter but down 10% from a year earlier, according to the company's preliminary filing on October 22.
LG Display is presenting FLiPP, its new OLED patterning process, as its answer to competitors' large IT OLED factories, but it has not yet committed to building a line. On its third-quarter earnings call on October 22, executives outlined the process's advantages and said, "the size or the timing of such investment and production have not been finalized yet."
AUO is entering the next chapter of its transformation as Chairman and CEO Paul Peng establishes a "quasi-holding company" model, turning its three major operating pillars into separate corporate entities to sharpen performance evaluations and resource allocation while distinguishing core from noncore businesses.
Samsung Display (SDC) is reportedly advancing both micro-patterned OLED (MPO) and inkjet-printed OLED technologies in parallel, expanding its non-fine metal mask (non-FMM) RGB OLED lineup. SDC is currently validating high-resolution fabrication processes using a 7-inch engineering sample for MPO, while evaluating a pilot line for inkjet printing, with initial commercial targets focused on IT panels such as notebooks and desktop monitors.
Surging memory prices are forcing e-reader makers to raise prices, weakening demand and clouding E Ink Holdings' 2026 outlook. E Ink has cut its revenue-growth forecast, while Netronix expects shipments to remain flat. The companies are looking to electronic shelf labels, advertising displays, and products to offset pressure on consumer electronics.
Gaming demand is reshaping the OLED panel market, with OLED monitor panel shipments forecast to surpass TV panel shipments for the first time in 2028. South Korean panel makers are accelerating their push into IT and monitor applications, while Taiwan-based brands Asus and MSI rank among the leaders in OLED monitor shipments.
LG Display (LGD) has reportedly continued developing microLED technology despite Apple Inc. ending its microLED project, though it has put large-scale mass-production investment on hold. The South Korean display maker is using external pilot lines to preserve its technical capabilities and prepare for potential future market growth.
Surging demand for optical interconnects in AI computing centers is pushing Micro LED technology into short-reach optical transmission inside data center racks. Differing views on Micro LED's prospects in optical communications, recently expressed by Largan Precision Chairman En-Ping Lin and AUO Chairman Paul Peng, have sparked significant debate across the industry.
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