Apple may need to give a cash infusion to one of its iPhone display suppliers, whose production has slowed due to high costs, Reuters reports Friday. Screens for the new iPhone expected on Sept. 12 have embedded touch sensors, eliminating the need for an additional touch-screen layer.
Sharp is “struggling with high costs that have cut into its margins on the screens,” the news service reports this morning, citing an unidentified production source… Read More
Earlier this month, word got out that Hon Hai (aka Foxconn) was looking to up its stake in Sharp Corporation to 10 percent, or more, giving it a fairly large piece of the Japanese company.
The news fueled rumors of an Apple TV set, as Foxconn is Apple’s favorite manufacturer and Sharp, well, makes TVs. But according to a new report, the two sides have yet to reach a deal… Read More
Funny thing how, after a period of inconsistent rumor mongering, all the pieces of an Apple branded television set rumor appear to be falling in place. First, the Wall Street Journal threw its credibility behind the iTV meme yesterday with a pair of stories describing a set-top box, likely a next-gen Apple TV, that could tap iCloud to store shows the instant they air and work with premium cable TV content.
Then earlier today we’ve learned via an analyst note that the iTV could be in production as we speak and that Apple is planning to offer both a standalone $1,250 HD TV set with AT&T‘s UVerse and Verizon’s FiOS contract and content deals, as well as a much cheaper and more advanced set-top box for Comcast customers.
And just as I explained the intricacies of a cool gesture recognition technology that iTV is thought to incorporate, a new report from Japan says Apple’s favorite contract manufacturer Foxconn is now asking to double its planned stake in Sharp to as much as twenty percent, up from the originally agreed 9.9 percent… Read More
Though the world’s largest product assembler Foxconn is taking advantage of Sharp’s financial woes, the company will want to offer a lifeline to the struggling Japanese giant, not just because it’s one of the suppliers of mobile displays for iPhones and iPads, but also because Apple is seeking to reduce its dependency on Samsung, the world’s largest maker of flat displays. That’s the crux of today’s report by Bloomberg, which also mentions the inevitable Apple television set rumor… Read More
Japanese giants once used to rule the consumer electronics landscape but no more. Even the TV set making biz, once the pinnacle of the “made in Japan” industry, has been declining rapidly due to strong competitive pressure from South Korea, the home to Samsung, the world’s largest TV maker.
Foxconn, an assembly company, in March announced intentions to purchase an eleven percent stake in Sharp, a manufacturer. Pundits and industry execs saw the move as laying the groundwork for a mass-scale production of a rumored Apple television set as Foxconn also agreed to buy a 46.48 percent stake in Sharp’s cutting-edge (though underutilized) LCD plant in Sakai in western Japan, a big loss maker for the company.
Even though Foxconn has helped Sharp weather some of the storm ahead, the company needs more help. Banks, however, are unwilling to issue new loans and Foxconn just decided to renegotiate the terms of its purchase of Sharp’s shares. The best bit: Foxconn has yet to produce the money for that deal… Read More
Sharp president Takashi Okuda today confirmed to Reuters that his company will begin shipping displays for Apple’s sixth-generation iPhone this month. This is the first time to my knowledge that a major supplier officially confirmed an unreleased Apple product, even if he didn’t give a more specific date for shipments beyond this month. The panels will be four inches corner to corner, 30 percent bigger than current iPhones, sources told the news gathering organization… Read More
The world’s largest contract manufacturer Foxconn is allegedly aiming to acquire board seat at Sharp, a report out from Asia claims.
Foxconn in May acquired an eleven percent ownership stake in Sharp in exchange for $844 million. It also bought a 46.48 percent stake in Sharp’s sister company Sharp Display which makes display panels for iPad 3 and is thought to be readying big-ass IGZO panels for a rumored full-blown television set from Apple… Read More
According to a former executive from Taiwanese supply chain, Foxconn’s recent investments into the Japanese electronics giant Sharp and its cutting-edge display factory is in fact part of preparations for a large-scale manufacturing of a rumored Apple television set, dubbed by the media the iTV… Read More
Back in May, a report quoted Foxconn CEO Terry Gou as saying his company was “making preparations” to assemble a full-blown television set for Apple. It proved bogus when Foxconn issued a statement claiming Gou “neither confirmed nor speculated about Foxconn’s involvement in the production of any product”, but such an ambiguously worded denial only added fuel to fire.
According to a new rumor by Chinese news site 21cbh.com (via AppleInsider), based on talks with a Sharp executive and other sources at the company, Sharp will begin delivering LCD television panels to Foxconn in the third quarter of this year, for the specific purpose of assembling Apple television sets… Read More
In another hint that Hon Hai Precision Industry, also known in the Western world as Foxconn, could be gearing up for mass production of a rumored Apple television set, Reuters now reports that Foxconn is in talks with the Japanese multinational corporation Sharp about increasing its stake.
This is interesting development as Foxconn in March bought an eleven percent stake in Sharp worth $844 million. The two companies now run Sharp’s cutting-edge display plant in Sakai, Osaka, leading some to speculate that Foxconn made the move on behalf of its biggest customer, Apple of California, which has long been rumored to be readying production of a full-blown television set, which Foxconn publicly denied… Read More
Well, we didn’t have to wait too long for the first fruits of a recent partnership struck between Asian product assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry, also know as Foxconn, and Japanese electronics giant Sharp.
According to a new report, Sharp will share its technological know-how with Foxconn’s new manufacturing facility in Chengdu that will produce display panels for Apple’s iPhone and other consumer electronics devices… Read More
We told you not long ago that German TV maker Loewe was potentially the subject of an audacious takeover bid by iPhone and iPad maker, Apple. The rumor made a modicum of sense considering talk of an Apple Television being in the works just won’t go away.
Now though, such a takeover appears to be out of the question, with the Germans themselves saying that no such takeover talks are in process after contacting German site, Heise.
Rumors of a $113 million buyout have been quashed after Loewe’s official stance was recorded as there being ‘absolutely nothing to it.’ Read More
CNET is out with a new report this week, which highlights some interesting comments made by DisplayMate‘s CEO Raymond Soneira. The company is in the video diagnostics business, calibrating and testing displays for manufacturers.
Anyways, according to Soneira, the iPad that Apple unveiled earlier this year was actually Apple’s “Plan B” for the product. It seems that the company’s “Plan A,” a slimmer, lighter tablet, required technology that just wasn’t ready in time… Read More
Now the new iPad is here, attentions have begun to turn to Apple’s next big thing. While it is true that the iPhone 5, or more likely the “New iPhone” will be that device, the proposed Apple Television is the thing that we are all getting excited about.
There are plenty of things we don’t know yet about what Apple has up its sleeve. In fact, it’s true that we know absolutely nothing for certain. As is so often the case, we are running on rumors and guesswork right now, not least when it comes to a potential release date.
The latest rumors surround just that, with Business Insider reporting that the Apple Television will debut in 2013… Read More
Yesterday’s news that Apple’s contract manufacturer Foxconn bought an eleven percent stake in the Japanese multinational corporation Sharp sent the tongues wagging. With a 46.5 percent stake in Sharp’s LCD plant in Sakai, Osaka, conventional wisdom has it that Foxonn, which just released its 2011 financial report, will bolster Sharp’s LCD business and make it more profitable by securing the lowest prices on components.
Other folks think the two partners joined forces to battle LG Display and Samsung for orders of Retina displays for the new iPad. After all, Sharp is already been credited with small-volume shipments of 2,048-by-1,536 pixel resolution panels for the device and they’re about to ramp up production in the second quarter.
Another intriguing possibility includes next-generation flat panels for a rumored Apple-branded television set, nicknamed the iTV… Read More
Japanese electronics maker Sharp said today it will form a strategic global manufacturing partnership with Foxconn parent Hon Hai Precision Industry Co that will see the latter take eleven percent ownership in the former. In a nutshell, an assembly company has just purchased a stake in a manufacturer.
Things get really interesting knowing that Hon Hai’s Foxconn is Apple’s long-standing manufacturing partner producing iPhones, iPads and Mac notebooks, but also PlayStation 3s, Xbox 360s and a host of other consumer electronics products for Western companies.
On the other hand, Sharp is currently on Apple’s list of supply chain partners and has allegedly produced 2.71 million Retina display panels for the new iPad, with plans to ramp up production in the second quarter. This strategic partnership should also help Foxconn and Sharp together battle LG and Samsung for Apple orders. Read More
Asian trade publication DigiTimes reported this morning that both Sharp and LG Display are set to increase their respective manufacturing output of Retina displays for the new iPad. The news follows a recent report by the same publication that Sharp shipped 2.71 million iPad Retina panels to Apple.
This might mean that production issues have finally been sorted out after both firms had reportedly failed to meet Apple’s exact quality requirements. Something tells me Samsung won’t like this. As you know, Apple is clever enough not to put all eggs in one basket, so to speak.
As a result of LG Display and Sharp jumping on the Retina bandwagon, Apple should be able to achieve a significant increase in iPad shipments for the next quarter and onwards… Read More
Last week, Bloomberg reported that Apple’s long-time supplier and frenemy Samsung has fulfilled the bulk of orders for the new iPad’s stunning 2,048-by-1,536 pixel resolution display, marketed under the Retina moniker. Piggy-backing on that story, Reuters chimed in with claims that LG Display is also filling iPad Retina display panel orders.
A new report by DigiTimes, a hit-and-miss Asian trade publication, asserted this morning that Sharp too is supplying Retina display panels for the tablet. Apple is known for sourcing components from multiple suppliers in order to reduce risks and squeeze the best prices possible. Unfortunately, quality issues with the highest-resolution display on a mobile device meant Sharp delivered lower-than-expected Retina shipments, pegged at 2.71 million units… Read More
A new report out of the Wall Street Journal claims that Sharp is closer than ever to being able to ramp up production of Retina displays for Apple’s new iPad.
Current shipping iPads feature Retina display panels manufactured by, ironically enough, Samsung, with both Sharp and LG supposedly set to join the fray sooner rather than later.
The Wall Street Journal suggests that Sharp may be the first to offer backup for Samsung, with mass production set to be underway “as soon as possible,” according to a source… Read More
