With Spring approaching, the rumors of Apple's forthcoming tablet, dubbed iPad 3, are surfacing endlessly. The newest one is that Sharp, which is originally thought to manufacture iPad 3's LCD panels, is reportedly now out of the tablet's display supply chains.

Korean tech Web site Electronic Times Internet News revealed that because the Japanese company didn't meet Apple's exacting quality standards, it was kicked out of the game. Instead, Samsung and LG will supply the purported Retina display (2048x1536) for iPad 3, which might launch in Spring. It's said that the high-density displays will boast of four times more pixel area than the iPad 2.

Citing an industry source, ET News reported that Samsung has started mass production for LCD panels late last year, whereas LG has participated in mass production with full capacity early this year.

In addition, Foxconn and Pegatron have also started to assemble the next generation iPad, in preparation of a March release.

The industry sources told the Korean Web site that Apple plans to place orders for no less than 65 million high resolution displays for iPad 3 this year. Prior to the release of iPad 3, more than 5 million units of the display will be needed, which must be on their way to Foxconn and Pegatron. And the quantities of LCD panels supplied by Samsung and LG in Q1 are estimated to be similar.

However, Sharp will continue to manufacture panels for Apple's smartphone. It seems that as the tech giant is using Sharp's displays for its next iPhone, naturally their cooperation will also continue.

The iPad on the horizon will reportedly sport a Retina display, quad-core processor, improved cameras, longer battery life and more.

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