In-Cell Touch Panels Could Make Next iPhone 0.44mm Thinner

[Maura]

AppleInsider reports today that according to KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the in-cell touch panels that Apple is rumoured to be planning to use in the next iPhone could reduced the phone’s thickness by approximately 0.44mm. This is because the in-cell touch panels do away with a separate touch sensor layer and also do not require the adhesive layer that current glass-on-glass iPhone displays use. According to AppleInsider, Kuo says that the in-cell touch panel technology that Apple may well be using in the next iPhone works by embedding the touch sensor inside the TFT LCD, thus saving so much space in comparison to the current iPhone 4S, which is 9.3mm thick. Kuo is of the opinion that Apple wants to release an iPhone that is less than 8mm in order to compete with the thinner phone designs that rival manufacturers are looking to release. Kuo adds that aside from the in-cell touch panel, the next iPhone could also benefit from having a thinner battery and a metal back instead of a glass back, which could knock another 0.96mm off the phone’s thickness. With all these factors combined, Kuo predicts that the next iPhone could be as thin as 7.920mm.

Source: In-cell touch panels expected to shave 0.4mm off Apple's next iPhone