Apple’s 20th Anniversary iPhone Just Lost its Best Upgrade

Apple is making major changes to its roadmap for next year’s 20th anniversary iPhone. The tech giant had plans to pack the special device with next-generation screen tech, but high costs and slow development have forced a change of direction (via Electronic Times).

Apple is reportedly putting off two major display features: Color Filter on Encapsulation (COE) and Low-Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide Plus (LTPO+). While both were heavily tested for the landmark phone, neither will make the cut for next year’s release. Apple has not given suppliers a revised launch date.

The decision comes down to supply chain reality. Memory prices are climbing fast across the tech sector, creating a wave of chipflation that drives up total build costs for smartphones. Adding expensive new screen components on top of rising component prices would force Apple to either eat the profit loss or push retail prices higher than buyers might tolerate.

Beyond financial pressures, the screen technology simply is not ready for prime time. COE drops the standard polarizing layer out of the display stack, letting the screen pass more light through while staying remarkably thin. LTPO+ upgrades the driving transistors inside the display, cutting out manufacturing steps and lowering power draw. Apple reportedly wants higher performance out of both tech stacks than current production yields can offer.

The news is not all bad for design fans. Apple is still going ahead with a four-sided curved display for the anniversary phone. This design bends the panel along all four edges, eliminating side bezels to create a true glass-slab look.

Apple previously used its 10th anniversary in 2017 to completely reshape its product line with the iPhone X, introducing OLED panels, Face ID, and ditching the physical home button.