iPhone, iPad May Get New Class Of Displays With Sharp

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Iridium. Gallium. Zinc. If this sounds like I’m reading the back of a breakfast cereal box to you, then brace yourself, because I’m about to clue you in on reports that say these three items may be finding their way into future iPhone and iPad displays thanks to a partnership between Apple and Sharp. And when they do–if they do–you’re likely going to like the results.

As it turns out, when you take these three elements, you end up with what’s called an IGZO display, the name taken from those three elements I described in the opening paragraph. And this display is actually expected to yield a resolution of 330 dots per inch, which will allow Apple to, in turn, offer up a high-definition display, but without using the current IPS system. What’s more, an IGZO display will mean that dual-bar LED backlighting systems will be unnecessary. This in turn provides several distinct advantages, including thinner overall devices (as if Apple devices were all that thick and unwieldy to begin with!), as well as improved battery life and what’s expected by some to be a better overall experience with the Apple systems.

The current word suggests that IGZO panels will start making their way onto Apple devices starting with the third-generation iPad, still set to land sometime next year at last report. Better still, Apple will reportedly be able to get them at lower prices thanks to their capital investment with Sharp that ended up in the panels making appearances in reality in the first place. Plus, word is that these will also make their way into the next line of iPhones, which is a pretty smart idea and will likely provide still more competitive advantage for the phones set to land next year.

Sharp has, reportedly, already begun making the panels, so earlier reports that said we’d be seeing new Apple devices hit next year get a little extra credence in light of that development as well. And if these work as well as the early reports suggest, the rest of the market will be hard pressed to catch up.

So what do you guys think here? Figure that the new Sharp panels will make Apple devices even better and do still more damage in the marketplace? Or do you figure that these won’t actually materialize for one reason or another with the coming of new iOS gear? No matter what you think, we want to hear from you, and the comments section is the place to do just that!