Apple iWatch Release Date: Wearable Gadget Expected To Arrive Spring 2014, LG Supplying Apple With OLED Displays, Test Units Greenlit For Production

Apple iWatch release date: The rumored wrist-like wearable device by Apple is arriving Spring 2014 and LG, the manufacturing partner of Google for the Nexus 5, is reported to be supplying the Cupertino tech giant with the OLED displays for the device. There has also been news that the company had already greenlit production for test units.

"LG Display has been in talks over flexible organic light-emitting diode panels for quite a while and it looks like it will be sealing the deal with Apple,” reports the Korea Herald.

According to Know Your Mobile, though LG is in negotiations and will most likely be a supplier for Apple, analysts say that this is not the only one supplying panels for the U.S. tech leader. Other display makers like Taiwan’s RiTDisplay is expected to be entering a supplier agreement with Apple.

Kim Young-woo of HMC Investment Securities say that to ensure that they have enough supplies of their material for the gadget, “Apple will have two vendors to be safe.” Young-woo said that RiTDisplay of Taiwan and LG Display of South Korea will be the two main suppliers.

Earlier, Korean newspaper Chosun Ibo reported that Apple is currently testing a prototype with multiple models and different sized screens in testing. The expected range of wearable gadgets include a 1.4-inch model, a 1.5-inch model and a 1.6-inch model.

The 1.5-inch model, according to an unnamed source Chosun Ibo reported, have been given a limited production run. The initial batch would most probably be test units. At the time of this writing, reports indicate that the 1.4-inch and 1.6-inch model are still being worked on.

Earlier this year, Apple reportedly trademarked the name iWatch in Japan and Russia. At the WWDC 2013, company CEO Tim Cook explained that he was interested in wearable tech, primarily on devices for the “wrist.” Know Your Mobile noted that though he showed interest in the promise of wearable gadgets, there are problems figuring out how to increase its appeal to a larger consumer base.

Samsung’s launch of the Samsung Galaxy Gear made it one of the first handset makers to develop a wearable wrist-like gadget.

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