Manufacturing

Suppliers ramping up hiring ahead of iPhone 7, which has ‘more complex’ design

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 17, 2016

Apple's Taiwanese suppliers have kicked off the recruiting process in preparation for an 'iPhone 7', CNBC reported Tuesday citing Economic Daily News. The mass-hirings have started earlier than usual because the iPhone 7 design is said to be “more complex than previous models,” which meant that Apple's suppliers needed to start work on iPhone 7 parts earlier than on previous iterations.

Both Foxconn and Pegatron had ramped up hiring as they prepared to assemble the upcoming iPhone 7 models, ahead of their expected September release.

Foxconn said to be close to deal to build iPhone plant in India

Cody Lee ∙ May 9, 2016

Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn is close to signing a deal with the Indian government to open an iPhone manufacturing plant in the country, reports the Economic Times. More specifically, the company is looking for a 1,200-acre plot of land in Maharashtra.

Today's news comes nearly one year after we first heard of Foxconn's interest in building facilities in India. If the deal goes through, the electronics-maker hopes to construct a $10 billion building for assembling Apple's smartphones, and others would likely follow.

Design of Apple’s ‘A11’ chip for 2017 iPhones and iPads has been finalized

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 6, 2016

Taiwanese component makers are currently scrambling to fulfill orders as the Cupertino firm is getting ready to kick off production of this year's upcoming iPhones and iPads.

Moreover, Apple's engineers should now be close to completing work on a 2017 iPhone and have certainly been developing a 2018 iPhone for some time now.

Trade publication DigiTimes wrote in a new report that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSMC), a foundry that builds chips for Apple, has now taped out an Apple-designed 'A11' chip that will power 2017 iPhones and iPads.

Panama Papers leak suggests iPhone manufacturer Foxconn may have evaded $22 billion in taxes

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 8, 2016

A whopping 11.5 million documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca, so-called Panama Papers leak, reportedly suggest that the world's top contract fabricator Foxconn, which assembles iPhones and many other consumer electronics products for other tech firms, may have evaded taxes worth up to a massive $22.86 billion via investments in Panama's offshore companies.

Foxconn vehemently denied its involvement in the Panama Papers scandal. In an eyebrow-raising move, the Taiwanese firm then dropped veiled threat it might resort to suing news publications that make up such rumors, according to DigiTimes on Friday.

Apple supplier Sharp starts prepping AMOLED production lines, likely for future iPhones

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 6, 2016

Hot on the heels of a reported $3.5 billion acquisition of Sharp by Apple's contract fabricator Foxconn, Sharp has reportedly begun setting up production lines dedicated to churning out AMOLED smartphone panels as Apple is said to be lining up suppliers to support its major move to outfit future iPhones with AMOLED screen technology.

According to a report Wednesday by DigiTimes, a Taiwanese trade publication, Sharp is setting up three production lines that should have total monthly capacity of 9.85 million 5.5-inch equivalent AMOLED panels.

iPhone manufacturer Foxconn buys Apple supplier Sharp in a $3.5 billion deal

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 30, 2016

It's finally official: the world's leading contract fabricator, Foxconn, which assembles iPhones and other products for Apple and other consumer electronics companies, has purchased the struggling Japanese giant Sharp, one of Apple's display panel suppliers, in a deal valued at a reported $3.5 billion.

As reported today by The Wall Street Journal, Foxconn believes this transaction will improve its position on the technology value chain and has plans to expand Sharp's production capacity and invest in the production of OLED screens that future iPhones are expected to adopt.

WSJ: iPhone contract manufacturer Foxconn is delaying the signing of Sharp takeover agreement

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 26, 2016

As previously reported, Apple's favorite contract manufacturer Foxconn has made a $6.2 billion bid to acquire the ailing Japanese consumer electronics maker Sharp, which has been in the business for a cool 103 years now. Although Sharp’s board has made the decision to accept the offer last Thursday, it seems the acquisition is not a done deal after all.

As reported Friday by The Wall Street Journal, Foxconn is reportedly delaying the signing of the takeover agreement after it had been “surprised” by new information Sharp had disclosed just a day before.

Foxconn makes a $5.3 billion offer to buy ailing iPhone display supplier Sharp

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 21, 2016

The Wall Street Journal has it on good authority that Foxconn, the world's biggest contract fabricator that assembles products for Apple and other companies, is buying Sharp, an iPhone display supplier.

Sharp has been in financial crisis for several years and banks have bailed it out twice in three years.

Foxconn has reportedly offered approximately ¥625 billion, or about $5.3 billion, to acquire Sharp. Back in 2013, Foxconn was supposed to buy a large stake in Sharp, but the deal quickly collapsed over share price dispute.

Rumor: Samsung pouring $7+ billion into flexible OLED production for iPhones

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 14, 2016

Korean outlet ET News said Thursday that a contract between Samsung and Apple on supplying flexible OLED screens for future iPhones has practically been agreed upon, with the South Korean conglomerate committing to a whopping $7.4 billion in capital expenditure over the next couple of years to buy OLED manufacturing equipment needed to produce about 30,000 to 45,000 OLED sheets per month.

Although Apple is said to have secured agreements with other panel makers for OLED technology, the size of the investment suggests that Samsung is about to become Apple’s biggest flexible OLED provider.

Apple supplier Sharp about to kick off mass production of energy-saving Super IGZO panels

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

Sharp, the ailing Japanese consumer electronics company, is about to start mass production of its Super IGZO panels for mobile devices that will have a higher resolution and consume up to twenty percent less energy than the company's standard IGZO panels, which already use just a fifth as much power as standard liquid crystal displays.

Super IGZO panels will go into mass production in early 2016, according to a report Friday by Nikkei. The panels will be manufactured at Sharp’s Kameyama Plant No.2 located in Mie Prefecture as the ailing company seeks to replace “some unprofitable television panels” on the conveyor belts.

Rumor: Apple TV 5 with ‘dramatically improved’ CPU and ‘new functions’ due in early-2016

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 4, 2015

The fourth-generation Apple TV has been available for less than two months and already talk is turning to a next-generation model.

A new report by DigiTimes, a hit-and-miss Taiwanese trade publication, cites unnamed supply chain sources as saying that a fifth-generation Apple TV with a brand new CPU and a heat-dissipation solution is entering into trial production in December and volume production in the first quarter of 2016.

Apple supplier LG Display building $4 billion OLED plant

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 20, 2015

LG Display, which supplies Apple with flexible OLED screens for the Apple Watch and LCD panels for other gadgets, is reportedly building a brand new facility that will significantly increase its OLED panel production as the firm looks to meet expected market demand as of 2017 onwards, according to a report from Korea's Digital Times cited by DigiTimes.

The new plant will cost north of $4 billion to build, with assembly lines expected to start churning out OLED panels for smartphones, tablets and TVs sometime between 2017-2018.