Taiwanese Electronics Makers Hail Upcoming iPhone 6 Booms

With Apple Inc. reportedly to launch 4.7- and 5.5-inch iPhone 6s at once in September, Taiwanese electronics makers involved in the supply chain are expected to see stronger sales due to such new launches in the third quarter (Q3) of this year, according to institutional investors.

Originally scheduled to hit the market at the end of this year, the 5.5-inch model is seen to likely cause another wave among iPhone fans and fuel the upcoming iPhone 6 boom, given that the previous iPhone editions have  received criticism for its smaller screen size than competitors.

Insiders with knowledge of the iPhone 6 reported earlier that the new iPhone will feature an A8 processor, in-cell touchscreen, fingerprint identification function, metal housing, and 10-20% narrower bezel than the prevision editions, and NFC (near field communication) function. Plus, 5.5-inch, 64GB model will have sapphire glass and a large-capacity battery, hence a higher unit price than predicted.

To say iPhone is Apple's bread and butter is not overstated, as the firm raked in US$91 billion in revenue from iPhones alone, higher than the total revenue of Oracle, Yahoo, Facebook and Twitter. Despite a significant slowdown in the first half (H1) of this year, the firm's full-year iPhone sales are expected to exceed 180 million units this year, mostly driven by the iPhone 6, says institutional investors.

With the iPhone 6 to be put into mass production starting in July, a couple of Taiwanese electronics makers have geared up to ramp up capacity. For instance, Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd. and Pegatron Corp., both contract assemblers, have hired more staff over the past month.

Meanwhile, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd., the island's largest wafer maker, Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Group, a leading IC tester and packager, and subcontractors from other sectors have also seen their production capacity increasingly booked by orders for parts and components for the iPhone 6 recently.

However, Catcher Technology Co., Ltd., a contract supplier of iPhone housings, has reportedly failed to pass Apple's certification for 4.7-inch iPhone 6 model, hence forced to delay shipment, which will certainly dampen sales to some extent.

The crux of the certification failure, insiders say, is the poor quality of the junction between plastic and metal in the housing during trial production, believed to have resulted from erroneous anodization that will take two to three months to fix. (SC)