| Cult of Mac

Foxconn will finally make AirPods for Apple

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Foxconn building
Apple's biggest contract manufacturer could finally assemble AirPods for it.
Photo: Puddingworld, CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons

Foxconn will soon start making AirPods for Apple. For this, the Taiwanese company will spend upwards of $200 million to build a factory in India.

Foxconn has never assembled AirPods for Apple despite being its biggest contract manufacturer. This will change once its new factory in India is ready.

Today in Apple history: iPhone factory deaths spark investigation

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Foxconn
Tim Cook visits one of Apple's factories in China.
Photo: Apple

December 11: Today in Apple history: Deaths at Pegatron iPhone factory spark investigation December 11, 2013: A Chinese labor rights group calls on Apple to investigate the deaths of several workers at a Shanghai factory run by iPhone manufacturer Pegatron.

Most controversially, one of the dead workers is just 15 years old. The underage worker reportedly succumbed to pneumonia after working extremely long hours on the iPhone 5c production line.

Apple speeds up plans to move iPhone assembly out of China

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Apple Store logo in Chengdu, China with two people standing in front of it
Apple no longer wants China to be its primary manufacturing base.
Photo: Unsplash

Apple has expedited plans to move a part of its supply chain outside of China. The company is asking suppliers to increase their assembly base in India and Vietnam.

Over the last year, China’s strict COVID-19 restrictions have disrupted Apple’s production lines in the country multiple times.

COVID lockdown lifted for primary iPhone Pro assembly plant

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Coronavirus-related shutdowns continue to disrupt Chinese factories.
After recent riots, there's hope normal operations will resume soon at Foxconn's iPhone Pro assembly plant.
Photo: Steve Jurvetson/Flickr CC

The Chinese government lifted the COVID-19 lockdown in Zhengzhou, China, the location of the Foxconn facility where most iPhone Pro models are assembled. This raises the possibility that normal operations at the facility will resume soon.

Lockdowns in the area have dramatically lowered assembly of Apple handsets… possibly by as much as 80%.

Protests at iPhone assembly plant could cost Apple billions

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Protests at iPhone assembly plant could cost Apple billions
Millions fewer iPhone 14 Pro units are supposedly going to be produced because of worker complaints about living conditions at the assembly plant.
Graphic: Cult of Mac/Daily Loud

Protests at a Foxconn plant in China where the two iPhone 14 Pro models are assembled will allegedly cut deeply into the supply of these handsets. Millions of units that would have been produced in 2022 without the protests supposedly now will not be.

Workers clashed with police during recent COVID-19 lockdowns at the plant, known as “iPhone City” due to its strategic importance to Apple.

Violent protests over COVID-19 controls and pay erupt at world’s largest iPhone plant

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Protesters and police clashed Tuesday and Wednesday at Foxconn's plant in Zhengzhou, China
Protesters and police clashed Tuesday and Wednesday at Foxconn's plant in Zhengzhou, China
Photo illustration: Cult of Mac

Protests over unpaid bonuses, anti-COVID-19 controls and even food quality led police to clash with hundreds of workers at the world’s largest iPhone factory in China, reports indicated Wednesday.

Social media videos and witnesses in Zhengzhou, where Foxconn operates a giant factory nicknamed “iPhone City,” said police beat and detained protesters.

Apple warns of iPhone 14 Pro’s limited availability ahead of holiday season

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iPhone 14 Pro held in hand
Your iPhone 14 Pro order might not arrive until after Thanksgiving.
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Planning on getting the iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max this holiday season? Getting your hands on one might be more difficult than you anticipate.

The latest COVID-19 curbs in China’s Zhengzhou have hampered the production of the latest Pro iPhones. Due to this, Apple now expects customers to wait longer to get their new iPhones.

Bad news for Xmas: Apple’s largest factory forced into ‘total lockdown’

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Foxconn building
Foxconn is Apple's biggest contract manufacturer.
Photo: Puddingworld, CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons

Days after reports of Foxconn employees hopping fences and fleeing from their jobs, a report late Wednesday from Taiwan News says Apple’s biggest iPhone factory is now on “total lockdown.” These new restrictions may have a big impact on Apple’s sales during the crucial holiday period.

Foxconn, whom Apple contracts to manufacture the lion’s share of iPhones, Macs and other Apple products, has had employees stay in on-site dormitories in a “closed-loop system” to prevent COVID outbreaks. Employees have been complaining about the “increasingly unsafe and inhumane working conditions” of the dorms.

iPhone 14 production in India won’t start the same time as China

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Apple supplier is increasing its ability to build masses of iPhones in India
iPhone 14 production in India won’t start as soon as expected.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple will reportedly start manufacturing iPhone 14 in India two months after its initial launch in September. The company has been working closely with its Indian suppliers to boost their production capacity in the region.

Apple typically starts manufacturing new iPhones in India six to nine months after their launch.

Apple steps up iPhone assembly in India

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india.iphone
Workers are already assembling iPhones in Indio.
Photo: Carnegie Council

Foxconn will begin shipping the iPhone 14 from its assembly plant in India almost as soon as its Chinese plant starts shipping Apple’s next smartphone, according to an industry analyst. This is apparently a sign that Apple is decreasing its dependence on China.

And Foxconn is reportedly building up its assembly capacity in India.