Report: Foxconn assembles 100 Apple iPhone prototypes using sapphire glass screens

At a Foxconn factory in Shenzhen, the contract manufacturer reportedly has assembled 100 prototypes of the next-gen Apple iPhone. What sets these units apart from others is that the display on all of the units is made of sapphire glass. Replacing the Gorilla Glass used on the handset with a material that is one of the hardest on the planet has made the manufacturing process more difficult. But that is something that Foxconn has apparently been able to overcome with this test.

The two companies that Apple is relying on for sapphire material, Synopsys and Bern Optics, have recently expanded their production facilities. Both provide the material for the rear camera and the TouchID fingerprint sensor on the Apple iPhone 5s. Apple is believed to consume 10% of the world's manufactured sapphire and the expansions seem to indicate further use of the material by the Cupertino based tech titan.

Apple CEO Tim Cook, during an interview broadcast on ABC today, confirmed that the company's new facility in Arizona will be used to produce sapphire glass that could be used for future iPhone models, or for the expected Apple iWatch.

source: AppleDaily (translated) via AppleInsider