Production

Foxconn now wants one-fifth of Sharp as iTV meme picks up steam

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 25, 2016

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...

More proof that a new iPhone is on the way

Cody Lee ∙ August 9, 2012

You've seen the leaked components, in fact, you've seen tons of them. You've seen the third-party cases and you've seen the tell-tale discounts popping up. It's pretty obvious that a new iPhone is on the way.

But just in case you needed more proof, a new report is out this morning claiming that component-makers in Apple's Taiwanese supply chain just posted record sales for the month of July...

Apple now accounts for 8.8% of Samsung’s revenue

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 7, 2012

Despite a massive legal spat between Apple and Samsung over who copied whose tablets and smartphones, the two frenemies remain dependent on each other's business. Samsung makes Apple's in-house designed mobile processors and supplies the iPhone maker with massive amounts of displays and flash memory chips for iOS devices.

A new report suggests the Apple account is worth a whopping 8.8 percent of Samsung's revenue, making Apple Samsung's largest customer and perhaps giving Cupertino some added leverage in its business and legal dealings with the South Korea-headquartered conglomerate. The next biggest Samsung client? Read on...

Why Foxconn must ensure survival of cash-strapped Sharp

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 7, 2016

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...

Foxconn rethinking its Sharp investment amid the sunset of Japan’s TV biz

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 3, 2012

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...

Rumor: iPad mini display production to start this month

Cody Lee ∙ August 2, 2012

Alongside the new iPhone that everyone keeps talking about, Apple's other big announcement this fall is expected to be a smaller tablet. Dubbed the "iPad mini," by the media, the slate is believed to house a 7.85-inch screen and fall in the $200 price range.

Although there's no actual evidence that such a product exists, it's been confirmed by a number different news outlets. In fact, a new report is out this evening claiming that Apple is set to start production on the smaller tablet's display sometime this month...

New report reaffirms next iPhone is already in production

Cody Lee ∙ July 23, 2012

A new report is out tonight, claiming that Pegatron, one of Apple's manufacturing partners in eastern China, has started production on the next-generation iPhone.

The timing makes sense, considering Apple is widely expected to unveil the smartphone sometime in the next few months — late September, early October...

BGR on iPhone 5: NFC, 4G LTE, 1GB RAM, fall release

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 18, 2012

Boy Genius Report is a hit and miss when it comes to Apple predictions and today the publication's editor Jonathan Geller posted a story which essentially recycles a bunch of separate rumors concerning the next iPhone. According to the author, final production of the iPhone 5 will start later this summer, which is what both the know-it-all Wall Street Journal and reliable Japanese blog Macotakara heard previously...

iPad mini: made in Brazil, has 3G, almost as thin as iPod touch

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 7, 2012

Following up on a string of recent reporting which revives the iPad mini rumor, the usually accurate Japanese blog Macotakara claimed that the device will be produced in Foxconn's new manufacturing facilities in Brazil. Manufacturing is apparently set to ramp up in September, just in time for mass availability around the holiday shopping season, as indicated in other reports...

Foxconn wants more Sharp shares, aims to beat Samsung displays on clearness

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 18, 2012

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...

Apple opening retail outlets in Chengdu and Shenzhen where iPads are made

Christian Zibreg ∙ June 6, 2012

Reuters reports that Apple is planning to open two new stores in Chinese cities Chengdu and Shenzhen, regardless of its ongoing legal spat with China's bankrupt display maker Proview over the rights to use the iPad moniker in the 1.33 billion people market.

Chengdu and Shenzhen are also homes to the world's largest manufacturing sites. It's also where contract manufacturer Foxconn runs production facilities where iOS devices are being made...

Labor watchdog says Foxconn sweatshops haven’t improved much

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 31, 2012

Labor watchdog Student & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehaviour (SACOM) today criticized Apple (again), arguing that conditions in Foxconn's manufacturing facilities in China haven't really improved following the FLA audits. In fact, they claim higher-ups continue to impose "humiliating disciplinary measures on workers", audits be damned...