We’re always hearing about new ways to protect phone screens. Be it new types of glass or curved displays, companies are always trying to solve the issue of fragile phones. Well, Apple may have cracked with with the iPhone 6 and sapphire.
The company has signed a deal to open a plant in Arizona. It’s a part of a partnership with GT Advanced Technologies, which specialises in artificially producing the material, which is harder than rock. All told, the deal is said to have cost $578 million.
Sapphire is already used in the iPhone 5s’s Touch ID sensor, although the new iPads don’t use it thanks to limited supply. This new plant would put an end to that issue, and pave the way for it to be used in upcoming displays.
A statement from Apple following the deal read: “GT has accelerated the development of its next generation, large capacity ASF (advanced sapphire furnaces) to deliver low cost, high volume manufacturing of sapphire material. Although the agreement does not guarantee volumes, it does require GT to maintain a minimum level of capacity.”
To further the good news, the plant will also be employing some 700 people. So sapphire seems to be saving jobs and not just screens.
Source: All Things D
