Cell Phone ZoneHow OLED iPhone displays impact replacement parts costs.

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How OLED iPhone displays impact replacement parts costs.

How OLED iPhone displays impact replacement parts costs.

October 31, 2019

Apple’s iPhone X was the first within the company to adopt Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) screens (except the iPhone XR which had an LCD screen to keep the cost down). It is rumored that the company may completely abandon LCD screens in 2020 to keep up with the competition, specifically Samsung, who is currently the largest OLED display provider.

 And even though OLED screens provide more vivid visuals and faster response times, the screens are actually thinner than LCDs, making them more susceptible to breaking. This is bad news for phone owners since a major changeover of any product or part usually means that limited resources are available for cell phone repairs. And when resources are strained, pricing for replacement parts is going to be at a premium. At least for the immediate future.

 Why? For one thing, Apple is putting the majority of their focus on building new phones so they can capitalize on profits. Replacement parts just aren’t a priority right now. However, as OLED screens become the norm moving forward, more replacement parts will be available from older model phones that are getting turned in for upgraded editions.

 Another thing that is limiting replacement parts right now is the fact that third party manufacturing sources don’t want to go through the effort of retooling their manufacturing processes just yet. They don’t want to start mass-producing OLED screens until they are sure that will be the wave of the future. Once these manufacturers get into full swing, the market will be flooded with replacement parts that are not only less expensive to purchase, they’ll be more readily available as the demand for them increases. Both scenarios will help to lower replacement parts costs in the long-run.

Cell Phone Zone Virginia will be closely monitoring Apple’s commitment to a full switchover to OLED screens as they move forward. We’ll also keep an eye on third-party involvement so we’ll be able to provide our iPhone customers with the quality repair services they may need. And of course, we’ll continue to maintain our commitment to pay top dollar for trade-ins, further ensuring the availability of OEM replacement parts as newer models are released.