China-based smartphone vendor Xiaomi Technology is likely to adopt sapphire for protective covers of Xiaomi 5, its 5.7-inch flagship model that will be showcased at the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show, Taiwan-based supply chain makers cited industry sources in China as indicating.
Japan-based Kyocera in early 2014 launched smartphones with protective covers made from internally-produced sapphire in the US market through cooperation with Verizon Wireless, while China-based Vivo and Huawei Device also launched smartphones with sapphire covers, the sources said.
If Xiaomi decides to adopt sapphire, existing sapphire production capacity is not sufficient to meet the demand, according to sources with Taiwan-based sapphire wafer makers.
For 5-inch and larger device screens, sapphire ingots' cross-section area must be enlarged and this will increase the time taken to grow sapphire crystal and decrease yield rates, the sources said.
Using sapphire as protective covers will also require complicated processing and result in higher cost, the sources indicated.
China-based Lens Technology and Biel Crystal Manufactory have expanded sapphire processing capacities in preparation for producing sapphire covers, the sources added.
