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Apple CEO Tim Cook shuns OLED displays, remains quiet about larger iPhone

By: , IntoMobile
Tuesday, February 12th, 2013 at 10:41 AM

Apple CEO Tim Cook was interviewed on a few different topics at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference. In particular he had a lot to say to dismiss ever using OLED display technology in a future iPhone, and was rather reserved about the possibility of an iPhone with a larger screen. Rumors have been flying about both, but mainly the latter, opening the doors for what might be a 5-inch iPhone to compete with larger Android smartphones.

Addressing OLED displays, Cook was more than pessimistic about the idea. “If you ever buy anything online and really want to know what he color is, as many people do, you should really think twice before you depend on the color from an OLED display,” he said after stating that OLED displays have “awful” color saturation.

When asked about the iPhone’s screen size, he seemed pretty confident at first about the current 4-inch offering: “We put a lot of thinking into screen size and believe me, we’ve picked the right one.” He stopped short there, throwing in “I don’t want to say what we will do or won’t do.” That last statement makes the conversation interesting since it’s not an outright denial.

Lastly, Cook took a bit of his interview time to nitpick at competitors’ approach to marketing. “Let me compare to the PC industry. Over the years, the way companies competed were two things: specs and price. People wanted to say, I’ve got the largest drive and fastest processor. In the camera business, people began to talk about megapixels.” He then added, “Do you know the speed of an AX Processor? You probably don’t. Does it matter? You want a fantastic experience.”

It looks like we can safely rule out OLED displays in iPhones, at least for now, but the iPhone Plus (or iPhone Math or whatever the hell you want to call a 5-inch iPhone) is still very much on the table.

[via AppleInsider]

About The Author

George Tinari

George has followed technology news for quite some time, but he only started writing about it a few years ago. He particularly enjoys covering Apple, but that doesn't stop him from reporting on a wide range of topics in the mobile area. When he's not reporting for IntoMobile, you can usually find George listening to a wide array of music, trying to be funny and sarcastic, eating, or voicing his opinions about all things tech on his personal blog, GT Daily.

  • http://twitter.com/WillieFDiazSF William Diaz

    This means that they are investigating OLED technology and are trying to find ways to make the color vibrant but not oversaturated like they claim. 100% sure when a company disses a product, it means they are working on it. HTC said they would not make entry level phones, they are turning that around again. T-Mobile said it was not looking to be acquired, and it was by MetroPCS. Apple said it wouldnt move to larger screens from the 3.7″ model and it has. When has a company actually said NO and followed through with NO.