Apple may be forced to reduce its iPhone 5S orders for the fourth quarter of 2013 due to supply constraints affecting the handset’s rumored fingerprint sensor and LCD driver chips. Both components were expected to enter production in late June or early July, but that’s now been pushed back into late July, according to industry sources.
“Poor yields of fingerprint-recognition chips and LCD driver ICs will likely force Apple to reduce first-quarter shipments of the rumored iPhone 5S, which is slated for launch in September 2013, according to industry sources,” DigiTimes reports.
“Volume production of fingerprint-recognition and LCD driver chips for the iPhone 5S should have started at the end of June or early in July, but issues related to yield rates will delay commercial production of the two chips to the end of July, therefore affecting the initial supply of the iPhone 5S, the sources explained.”
The fingerprint chips, which were designed by AuthenTec, a company Apple purchased for $356 million in July 2012, are being manufactured by TSMC and packaged by Xintec. Around 3 million units from the initial batch of shipments will be delayed until the fourth quarter, the sources claim.
As a result, iPhone orders for the fourth quarter are likely to reach 30 million units — that’s including the iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, and the iPhone 5S.
As always, DigiTimes rumors should be taken with a pinch of salt; it’s not vert often they’re accurate when they concern Apple.
Source: DigiTimes
