Huawei, Samsung’s strongest opponent is coming: Apple plots a folding screen iPhone

Folding mobile phone war is in full swing, Apple conspired to fold iPhone: a prototype of a foldable screen has been developed

According to media reports, Apple has begun the early development of a foldable screen iPhone.

According to reports, Apple has developed a foldable screen prototype for internal testing but has not yet confirmed its plans to launch a foldable iPhone. According to people familiar with the matter, this development work does not exceed the scope of the display, which means that Apple has not yet had a complete prototype of the mobile phone in its laboratory.

Nevertheless, from Apple's move, we can still see its intention to test the foldable iPhone. And this may become a potential competitor for similar devices from Samsung and other companies.

Apple has a long history of folding screen layout

In fact, Apple has always been interested in foldable displays. As early as 2017, Apple cooperated with LG Display to produce such a screen.

In the following time, Apple also filed a number of related patent applications, including coating patents, hinge structure, folding screen patents, and foldable mobile phones that can be attached to clothes. The United States Patent and Trademark Office has also granted Apple a patent called "foldable lid and display for electronic devices."

The hinges of the foldable screen-tested this time are almost hidden. For Apple, this may be a fundamental change.

Folding mobile phone market continues to improve

Prior to this, Huawei and Samsung had both launched foldable phones, and they were sold out as soon as they were launched.

Regarding the reason for the popularity of folding mobile phones, IFC once pointed out in a research report that "folding" is the basic function of "smartphone 3.0". The logic behind it is that the emergence of folding screens has greatly enhanced mobile office and online mobile phones. The entertainment scene, and more importantly, the emergence of the folding form makes the same smartphones in the 2.0 era become personalized again.

2021 will also be the most intensive year for the market of folding screen mobile phones. Ross Young, the founder and chief analyst of Display Search and DSCC, once said that for foldable smartphones, in the second half of 2021, there may be a variety of foldable devices on the market, at least three of which are from Samsung, and four One comes from OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi, and one comes from Google.

It can be seen from this that in the second half of this year, there will be at least 8 folding screen mobile phone products in the smartphone market. In addition to the above major manufacturers, LG, Asus, Lenovo and other factories also have plans to launch new products. In a research report released on December 22, 2020, IFC Securities stated that with the subsequent addition of more mobile phone manufacturers, the market for folding screen mobile phones is expected to further accelerate growth, and shipments will also rise rapidly.

Strategy Analytics previously predicted that global shipments of foldable smartphones will grow from less than 1 million units in 2019 to 100 million units in 2025.

The industry believes that the era of folding-screen phones may have truly come.

Is expected to reshape the smartphone supply chain

The rapid growth of the folding screen mobile phone market is expected to trigger the reshaping of the smart phone supply chain, and industry chain companies may usher in opportunities.

First of all, the largest increase in value in foldable phones comes from the display panel. Taking Samsung’s flagship phone Galaxy S 9 and Galaxy Fold as an example, the value has increased significantly from US$79 to US$218. IFC Securities estimates that global sales of folding mobile phones are expected to reach 14 million units this year, and the market for folding mobile phone panels will reach 21.4 billion yuan.

At present, the global manufacturers capable of mass production of folding mobile phone panels are mainly Samsung Display, BOE A and TCL Technology. With the rapid increase in the penetration rate of folding mobile phones, A-share companies BOE A and TCL Technology will greatly benefit from the wave of folding mobile phone panels.

Secondly, the biggest change in the function of folding mobile phones lies in the "bendability". PI (polyimide) material has become the key to realizing the folding function of mobile phones. At present, Dinglong is the only company in China that has both the mass production capacity of PI slurry and PI film, and its PI materials have been illuminated in Shenzhen Tianma.

At present, the combination of liquid metal + MIM technology is the best production plan for hinges, which can support the mobile phone panel to complete more than 100,000 folding times. There are hundreds of MIM components in the hinge of folding mobile phones, and the increased volume of folding mobile phones will further stimulate the growth of the MIM market.

The acquisition of Dongmu shares of Fuchi Hi-Tech and Dongguan Huajing has become the domestic MIM leader and has entered the supply chain of Huawei consumer electronics products such as folding mobile phones, smartwatches and VR. In addition, Yi'an Technology, which supplies liquid metal components in Huawei's folding mobile phone hinges, is also a beneficiary of the folding industry chain.

In addition, the following industry chain companies may also benefit fully.

Changxin Technology (300088) has shifted from CPI to UTG (ultra-thin glass) as the protective layer of folding screen mobile phone screens in recent years, opening up a new growth track for thinning. The company's UTG-related new products have been successfully developed and will fully benefit from the increase in the penetration rate of folding screen mobile phones in the future.

The zirconium-based liquid metal deployed by Sanxiang New Materials (603663) is one of the preferred materials for the hinge part of folding mobile phones. As a key material for folding screen mobile phones, liquid metal has ushered in rapid growth.

Double Star New Materials (002585) company’s optical film products have been certified by international first-line brands including Samsung and supplied globally.

Su Daweige (300331) company's self-developed flexible conductive film can make up for the current mainstream ITO material conductive film can not be flexible and is expected to replace ITO conductive film as an application material for folding screen mobile phones.

Wanrun shares (002643) is a leading company in the field of OLED front-end materials and will benefit from the rapid growth of the folding screen mobile phone market.