DSCC’s UTG vs. CPI Foldable Smartphone Forecast
We were recently asked for our foldable UTG vs. CPI forecast by Bloomberg Korea so I put together the following chart. As indicated, while CPI led in 2018 and 2019, UTG is expected to lead from 2020. The gain by UTG is a result of Samsung adopting it in the Z Flip and the Z Fold 2 and we expect future Flip and Fold devices to continue using UTG. The Z Flip will be the highest volume foldable product in 2020 and we expect the Z Flip 2 and Z Fold 3 to compete for the best-selling product in 2021. Importantly, today, UTG capacity is constrained by Samsung Display’s glass processing (cutting/chemically treating) supplier Dowoo Insys. Samsung Display has made a big investment in Dowoo Insys and Dowoo Insys will be more than tripling capacity over the next 2 years. I will be sharing the unyielded and yielded UTG capacity outlook in my foldable talk at the SID/DSCC Business Conference. This data is important as it limits the upside to the foldable market given the #1 brand and panel supplier are constrained by the supply of this component.