Early Glitches Caused a Month Delay in iPhone 8 Production [Report]

The iPhone 8/Edition was plagued by production glitches early in the manufacturing process, according to a new report from the WSJ. Those glitches could resulted in extended supply shortages for Apple's 10th anniversary device.

The production glitches led to a setback of about a month in the manufacturing timetable. Foxconn Technology Group, the Apple contractor that assembles iPhones, has been ramping up production at its manufacturing complex in Zhengzhou, China. The company is paying bonuses to employees who can help bring new hires on board at its Zhengzhou plant, which Foxconn said in June employs about 250,000 people.

There were several things that caused delays in production. Apple has decided to use organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screens from Samsung for its new smartphone; however, the display modules are different from the ones Samsung uses on its own devices. While Samsung's OLED displays have an integrated display and touch panel, Apple wanted to the touch panel outside of the display. This involves more steps and more layers of adhesive and protective film creating a greater risk of manufacturing error.


Additionally, Apple decided to ditch the physical home button and embed the Touch ID sensor into the new display. This proved difficult and Apple eventually abandoned the fingerprint scanner in favor of a password or face recognition. Precious time was lost and production was put back by about a month, sources say.

The iPhone 8 or iPhone Edition is said to cost around $1000, in part due to more expensive components. Apple is set to unveil the device on September 12th at the Steve Jobs Theater.

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