TSMC's 'Rush Orders' Presumably Fueling Broadcom Part Supplies for iPhone 5

tsmcBloomberg reports that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has announced a spike in third quarter sales fueled by recent "rush orders", with industry experts suggesting that the demand is almost certainly coming from Broadcom as it fills orders for components of Apple's iPhone 5.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Broadcom’s biggest supplier, last week said third-quarter sales would exceed earlier forecasts because of rush orders from an unnamed customer. Other large Taiwan Semiconductor clients have disclosed disappointing results, suggesting that the customer was probably Broadcom, rushing to meet demand from Apple, according to a supply-chain analysis by Bloomberg.

“Broadcom is the largest link between Apple and Taiwan Semiconductor,” said Richard Davenport, a Bloomberg supply chain analyst, in a report. “Broadcom appears to be a likely candidate for Taiwan Semiconductor’s rush orders.”

Broadcom has historically provided the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth chip for Apple's iPhone products. It also provides a GPS chip for the GSM iPhone 4, but the need for that chip was eliminated in the CDMA iPhone 4, where the MDM6600 baseband chip from Qualcomm provides integrated GPS control circuitry.

The report notes that these rush orders for the parts presumed to be for Broadcom and Apple indicate that manufacturers are trying to make up for shortages of an existing component in the supply chain rather rolling out a new part. One analyst reasons that Broadcom should have anticipated the demand for its chips for the iPhone 5 and thus the rush order may not be for Apple, but it is possible that Apple is still seeking to boost production of the device as it anticipates strong early sales.

Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

Tones2 Avatar
157 months ago
If Apple is projecting "early strong sales" that are greater than normal initial iPhone sales, they better give us at least a 4" screen and / or 64 GB, or they'll be in for a big disappointment. There's not gonna be a lot of current iPhone 4 users jumping on the bandwagon for just a slightly faster phone with a slightly better camera.

Tony
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
spazzcat Avatar
157 months ago
This is getting crazy even for Apple. Apple just tell us already...
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TWSS37 Avatar
157 months ago
omgomgomgomg!!

Credit card ready.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Sedrick Avatar
157 months ago
is that an.... iPhone 5 in my toast....?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Tones2 Avatar
157 months ago
Jeebus, next we'll be seeing imprints of the iPhone 5 on tacos in Mexico. Apple has to love the myth-like hype that their warmed over iPhone 4 is getting. Man the joke will be on us.

Mmmm....Apple tacos.....:D
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
newyorksole Avatar
157 months ago
As long as it has 64GB or a bigger screen I'll be happy.

I already know iOS5 will be amazing, the design will be nice, it'll be faster and iCloud will be amazing too.

So everything else is just +++
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 15 Pro Lineup Feature

iPhone 15 Models Feature New Setting to Strictly Prevent Charging Beyond 80%

Tuesday September 19, 2023 2:04 pm PDT by
All of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models feature a new battery health setting that prevents the devices from charging beyond 80% at all times when enabled, as confirmed by The Verge's Allison Johnson during a Q&A session today. The new setting is separate from the pre-existing Optimized Battery Charging feature on iPhones, which intelligently delays charging past 80% until a more...
iOS 17 and iPhones Feature

iOS 17: 10 New Features That Just Launched

Sunday September 17, 2023 12:35 pm PDT by
In June, Apple announced iOS 17 with a wide range of new features and changes for the iPhone. Following over three months of beta testing, the free software update will be released this Monday, September 18 for the iPhone XS and newer. Below, we have recapped 10 key features coming to the iPhone with iOS 17, with additional features coming later this year. The update should be released to...
iOS 17

Apple Releases iOS 17.0.1 and iPadOS 17.0.1 With Bug Fixes, Plus iOS 17.0.2 for iPhone 15 Models

Thursday September 21, 2023 10:28 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 17.0.1 and iPadOS 17.0.1 updates for the iPhone and the iPad, adding bug fixes to the new software. The iOS 17.0.1 and iPadOS 17.0.1 updates come just a few days after Apple launched iOS 17 and iPadOS 17. The software, which is build 21A340, can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. There is a...
emojipedia 15 1 emoji

Emoji Coming to Future iOS 17 Update Include Shaking Head, Brown Mushroom, Lime, Phoenix and More

Tuesday September 19, 2023 12:43 pm PDT by
As Apple was announcing new iPhone models last week, the Unicode Consortium was officially approving new emoji characters that are set to be added to smartphones starting in 2024. Mockup of new emoji from Emojipedia Approved Unicode 15.1 emoji include phoenix, lime, an edible mushroom, shaking head vertically (as in a "yes" nod), shaking head horizontally (a "no" head shake), and broken...