Computerworld reports that the shutdown of a Chinese manufacturer may affect inventories of Apple's MacBook Pro and MacBook Air notebooks.
Taiwanese company Catcher Technology has had to temporarily close down a factory in eastern China due to complaints of a "strange odor" coming from the building. Catcher is said to be responsible for 60% of Apple's uni-body aluminum casings for Apple's notebook line. In a statement, Catcher admitted that customer supplies would be affected.
"Shipments to our customers will inevitably be affected. We already asked them to make adjustments to their (casings) procurement," Catcher President Allen Horng told a news conference.
It's not clear when the plant will resume full operations. Apple obtains the other 40% of its case supply from Foxconn.
The timing is unfortunate as we've been hearing rumors that Apple was planning on a small MacBook Pro refresh as early as this week. Rumors had suggested a processor bump was due late this year, and new part numbers have suggested an imminent launch.
Friday September 19, 2025 10:02 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
As reported by Bloomberg today, some of the new iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air models on display at Apple Stores today are already scratched and scuffed.
French blog Consomac also reported on this topic.
The scratches appear to be most prominent on models with darker finishes, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max in Deep Blue, and the iPhone Air in Space Black.
Images Credit: Consoma ...
Thursday September 18, 2025 9:17 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions.
The update will have a build number of 23A350, or similar, the account said.
It is likely that iOS 26.0.1 will fix a camera-related bug on the new iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro models. In his iPhone Air review, CNN Underscored's Henry T. ...
Friday September 19, 2025 7:39 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
While the iPhone Air is equipped with Apple's custom C1X modem for cellular connectivity, all of the iPhone 17 models are outfitted with Qualcomm modems still.
A teardown video shared on Chinese platform Bilibili today (via Reddit) appears to confirm the iPhone 17 Pro Max is equipped with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X80 modem in particular. The same modem is likely used in the iPhone 17 and iPhone ...
Apple's new iPhones launch today, and there are plenty of options to choose from when it comes to protecting your new device from drops and scratches. In this article, we're taking a look at some of the best options for iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Air cases, as well as a few charging accessories.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
Wednesday September 17, 2025 2:56 pm PDT by Juli Clover
It's been two days since iOS 26 was released, and Apple's new Liquid Glass design is even more divisive than expected.
Any major design change can create controversy as people get used to the new look, but the MacRumors forums, Reddit, Apple Support Communities, and social media sites seem to feature more criticism than praise as people discuss the update.
Complaints
There are a long...
Friday September 19, 2025 8:39 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
YouTube channel REWA Technology today shared an iPhone 17 Pro teardown video, offering a closer look inside the model with a SIM card tray.
We are still waiting for repair website iFixit to share a more comprehensive teardown of the latest iPhone models, but this video provides a good look in the meantime.
The device features various internal design changes, including larger rear camera...
These are the factories we've read about where workers are constantly inhaling aluminum dust, getting sick, and even dying. The fact that authorities in China have shut it down tells you it's a pretty bad situation. What's unfortunate is that people are sick from factory work.
When the Foxconn factory exploded, there were reports that workers there too were inhaling aluminum dust and they found a lot of huge safety violations.
This factory is only finally getting attention because the smell was so bad it was bothering neighbors near the factory--imagine what it's like inside.
There is a precedent for this situation: late 19th century/early 20th century United States. It was a moral tragedy. And it was for the sake of greed. And saying the timing is unfortunate now because you are worried an unannounced, very slightly speed bumped MBP will be delayed is also greedy.
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"The timing is unfortunate as we've been hearing rumors that Apple was planning on a small MacBook Pro refresh as early as this week."
I don't remember any reporting on these rumors either. Isn't this MacRumors?
One thing is for sure. I don't want AAPL to tank because of this. I think that most investors were hoping for a homerun earnings report on Tuesday... and a small bump in the stock price. Now... who knows?
I hope someday they can bring production to the states.
Made and Designed in California
As long as people everywhere demand quality products at cheaper & cheaper prices it'll never happen.
Unless Americans want to get paid peanuts so that the cost of the products don't dramatically rise forget about it.
Greed, in terms of the profits demanded by corporations & shareholders, & the desire for cheap products demanded by consumers is the enemy of morality in business.
This factory is only finally getting attention because the smell was so bad it was bothering neighbors near the factory--imagine what it's like inside.
It was fine inside. Passed all the air-quality tests. It stunk outside because they were doing a real good job of exhausting whatever it is. Typical Chinese corruption...move the problem around instead of fixing it. In the USA we rely on Congress to do that for us.
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I hope someday they can bring production to the states.
Made and Designed in California
Well, they could move it to Canada. I understand there's a good-sized phone/tablet factory there that's not doing much these days. ;)
I hope someday they can bring production to the states.
Made and Designed in California
The only problem would be that as they are going to pay the minimum salary, nobody would like to work there. So, they'll hire illegal Mexicans. Then, Americans are going to complain that Mexicans steal their jobs.
