Comment by wvenable
16 hours ago
Yes, LCDs are made as giant sheets that are cut into panels. They will want to cut those sheets in a way to ensure the least amount of waste as possible. They are not making them completely arbitrary sizes.
16 hours ago
Yes, LCDs are made as giant sheets that are cut into panels. They will want to cut those sheets in a way to ensure the least amount of waste as possible. They are not making them completely arbitrary sizes.
That giant sheet of mother glass is 2940mm x 3370mm. Cutting efficiency dictates the size of TVs, but it's basically irrelevant for phone or tablet displays.
Each block or piece of mother glass can be used for dozens or even hundreds of LCDs but it seems obvious that there are only so many ways you can effectively slice it.
While manufacturers can theoretically produce custom-sized LCD panels, it's more economical and efficient to stick to standard sizes that align with their production lines. Producing custom-sized panels can involve retooling. Choosing a standard size also ensures greater availability.
For a low cost product, I don't see why Apple would mess around with LCD sizes.
Still, this is just a guess. Only Apple knows for sure.