Nikkei

Apple is said to be in talks with suppliers to make MacBooks in Thailand as the company continues to diversify its supply chain outside of China. According to Nikkei Asia, suppliers involved in the talks already have established bases in Thailand for other clients, which has facilitated discussion surrounding the possible assembly and production of MacBook components and modules in the...

Apple's long-rumored AR/VR headset has yet to be announced, but Nikkei Asia today reported that the company's manufacturing partner Foxconn is already developing a cheaper second-generation version of the headset. Image Credit: Ian Zelbo The report cites an unnamed "executive with knowledge of the development" who claims that Apple's first headset will be "extremely expensive," with industry...

Apple has asked suppliers to make fewer components for the AirPods, MacBook, and Apple Watch families in the first quarter of this year due to low demand, according to a report from Nikkei Asia. From the report: In a sign of the gloomy outlook for consumer electronics, Apple has notified several suppliers to build fewer components for AirPods, the Apple Watch and MacBooks for the first...

Apple plans to begin producing MacBook models in Vietnam for the first time next year, according to a new report from Nikkei Asia. Citing sources briefed on the matter, the report says that Apple has tapped Foxconn to start making MacBooks in the country as early as around May. Taiwan's Foxconn was granted a license in January 2021 to construct a $270 million plant in Vietnam for the...

Apple is in the process of relocating Apple Watch and Mac production to the Southeast Asian country of Vietnam as part of a broader push to diversify its supply chain, Nikkei Asia reports. The report says that Apple's supplier Luxshare has begun trial production of Apple Watch and MacBook models in Vietnam. Vietnam is already the home for production of several Apple productions, including cer...

Apple is shifting some iPad production from China to Vietnam for the first time, Nikkei Asia reports. Currently, the overwhelming majority of the ‌iPad‌'s supply chain is concentrated in China. Apple has been reported to be interested in moving at least some ‌iPad‌ production to Vietnam since January 2021, but supply chain issues over the past year are said to have delayed the move. Now, the ...

Development of at least one iPhone 14 model is three weeks behind schedule due to Chinese lockdowns and in a worst case scenario could impact initial production volumes, according to a new report today. Despite an easing of restrictions, the impact of lockdowns beginning in late March in and around Shanghai is said to have had a lingering impact on supply chains, according to sources who...

Critical Apple suppliers who produce iPhones and MacBooks have suspended production in key locations amid new restrictions and lockdowns that threaten an already constrained supply chain, Nikkei Asia reports. Citing a stock exchange filing, Nikkei Asia reports that Pegatron, one of Apple's leading iPhone suppliers after Foxconn, has suspended ‌iPhone‌ production at its facilities in Shanghai ...

Apple is reportedly cutting production for the new third-generation iPhone SE just weeks after launch due to uncertainty caused by current global conflict and alleged low demand, according to a report from Nikkei Asia citing unnamed sources. According to the report, Apple has informed suppliers to cut back on production of the ‌iPhone SE‌ for this quarter by as much as two to three million...

In January 2020, a man who identified himself as an Apple parts manager informed Japanese auto supplier Sanden that Apple wanted to make electric vehicles, and presented schematics of an electric vehicle and air conditioner parts, according to Nikkei Asia. Apple Car concept by Vanarama based on patents filed by Apple Sanden is a leading manufacturer of air conditioner parts for vehicles, and...

Apple's main chip manufacturing partner TSMC will beginning producing Apple's first in-house 5G modem chips for the iPhone in 2023, according to a report from Nikkei Asia. The move, which has been under development for several years and enhanced by Apple's 2019 acquisition of the majority of Intel's modem business, will allow Apple to shift away from Qualcomm as a supplier for the important chips ...

Amid long waiting times for iPhone 13 models around the world, Apple has reportedly reallocated iPad parts to make up for shortages, in another signal that the global paucity of chips is impacting Apple's supply chain. ‌iPad‌ and iPhone share common components including core and peripheral chips, which means Apple is able to shift supplies between the devices to prioritize one or the other,...

The newly launched iPhone 13 and ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro are apparently hitting a snag in production, mainly due to a new wave of health concerns and limited manufacturing capacity for the devices' camera systems in Vietnam, according to a new report from Nikkei Asia. The ‌iPhone 13‌ mini, ‌iPhone 13‌, ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro, and ‌iPhone 13‌ Pro Max all feature sensor-shift optical image stabilization, a...

Apple will need to pay more for the chips in its devices and may pass rising costs on to its customers, according to sources speaking to Nikkei Asia. TSMC, Apple's main chip supplier, is in the process of increasing its prices following wider inflation in the industry caused by the global chip supply shortage. The company's planned price rises are said to be the most substantial chip price...

On Tuesday, Nikkei Asia published a report claiming the upcoming Apple Watch Series 7 will feature blood pressure measurement capabilities, and that this is one of the reasons why production of the device has hit snags as manufacturers adjust to the more complex design. Later the same day, Bloomberg cited its own sources corroborating Nikkei's main claim that the new model had brought...

Production of the upcoming Apple Watch Series 7 has been delayed due to the upcoming watch featuring a "complicated design," according to a report by Nikkei Asia. According to the report, Apple suppliers began small-scale production of the watch last week, and during which, employees "encountered critical challenges in reaching satisfactory production performance." Manufacturers of Apple...

Foxconn, one of Apple's largest suppliers, has said it will begin construction of all-electric vehicle plants in the United States and Thailand this year, with hopes of them being operational by 2023, according to a report from Nikkei Asia. From the report: Foxconn, the world's largest contract electronics producer, on Thursday said it will build electric vehicle manufacturing facilities...

Apple is tapping more Chinese suppliers as it seeks to meet ambitious targets for iPhone 13 production, according to a new report by Nikkei Asia. Apple is set to produce between 90 million and 95 million iPhones through January, according to a previous Nikkei report, and China's Luxshare Precision Industry has won 3% of orders away from Taiwanese rivals Foxconn and Pegatron. Luxshare will...

The most important TSMC factory that manufactures Apple's chips destined for next-generation iPhone and Mac models has been hit by a gas contamination, according to Nikkei Asia. The factory, known as "Fab 18," is TSMC's most advanced chipmaking facility. TSMC is Apple's sole chip supplier, making all of the processors used in every Apple device with a custom silicon chip. Industry...

Apple chip supplier TSMC is planning to manufacture chips with a 2nm fabrication process by 2024, according to Nikkei Asia. TSMC plans to build a new factory on 50 acres of land for two-nanometer chips in Hsinchu, Taiwan, scheduled to begin manufacturing operations in 2024. Construction has been cleared to begin in early 2022, with equipment being installed in 2023. For context, if Apple...