Foxconn - page 8

Apple’s biggest assembly partner wants Toshiba’s chip business

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iPhone sales drive Apple’s biggest supplier to big profits
Foxconn could cement its position as Apple's biggest supplier.
Photo: CBS

Foxconn CEO Terry Gou has said the company is “very serious” about acquiring Toshiba’s memory chip business.

If this happens, it would cement Foxconn as potentially Apple’s single biggest manufacturer, with it having already purchased a controlling interest in iPhone display maker Sharp, in addition to building iPhones and iPads for the company.

iPhone maker will spend $5 billion building factories in India

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Apple supplier is increasing its ability to build masses of iPhones in India
Foxconn will spend big bucks in India.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple supplier Foxconn has reconfirmed its intentions to build factories in India, with officials telling ministers from the state of Maharashtra that it will invest $5 billion building plants in the country.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is said to be working with Foxconn to help find suitable land in the state to fit the iPhone maker’s demands.

Foxconn’s next plant could kill Apple leaks

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foxconn
Big Apple leaks could become a thing of the past.
Photo: Foxconn

Foxconn is planning to build a new prototyping facility right alongside Apple’s upcoming research and development center in Shenzhen, China.

The move will “better help Apple create prototypes” of products in the development process, and could mean a lot fewer leaks for curious fans.

Key Apple partners could set up shop in U.S.

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foxconn
Could we see buildings like this in the U.S. soon?
Photo: Foxconn

A number of key Apple suppliers are considering new facilities in the U.S., according to reports out of China.

Assembler Foxconn, display maker Sharp, and chip maker TSMC are all said to be interested in taking advantage of new business incentives proposed by soon-to-be President Donald Trump.

Apple to switch up its manufacturing process for iPhone 8

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iPhone 7 black
Apple's making big changes for an all-new iPhone 8.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple will adopt a new manufacturing process to deliver an all-new form factor for iPhone 8, according to a new report. The next-generation Apple smartphone will use a stainless steel forging process for its metal frame as opposed to traditional CNC machining.

Apple adds another manufacturer to its iPhone 8 team

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iPhone 6 Plus_8
Wistron will help build the iPhone 8.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple has added a third manufacturer to its stable for the 2017-era iPhone 8, according to a new report.

The newcomer? Wistron, which previously gained experience as an Apple supplier on secondary iPhone handsets such as the iPhone 5s and, reportedly, the iPhone SE. It will join established Apple suppliers Foxconn and Pegatron working on the next-gen tenth birthday iPhone, which will likely launch next September.

Former Foxconn manager charged with stealing 5,700 iPhones

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Foxconn employees accused of $43 million iPhone scam
Tim Cook meeting an iPhone manufacturer in China.
Photo: Apple

A one-time senior manager at Apple manufacturer Foxconn is facing a possible ten years in jail after allegedly stealing 5,700 iPhones and selling them on for $1.5 million.

The thefts reportedly took place at one of Foxconn’s factories in Shenzhen, China, where the manager — identified only as “Tsai” — used eight employees to help smuggle the handsets out of the building.

iPhone 8’s glass design will finally bring wireless charging

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iPhone wireless charging
Get ready for wireless charging!
Photo: Ivo Marić and Tomislav Rastovac

The rumored decision to adopt a glass chassis for the next-generation iPhone is reportedly fueled by a desire to improve wireless charging, another key feature supposedly coming to Apple’s 2017 phone.

The report comes from notable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who claims that all 2017-era iPhones will boast the long-awaited wireless charging tech.

How the tech industry outsources pollution to China [Kahney’s Korner podcast]

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Death by Design documentary
The hard-hitting Death by Design documentary is a sobering look at the environmental legacy of the tech industry.
Photo: Death by Design

The tech industry appears to be nice and clean, but it has a long and toxic history of environmental damage. Silicon Valley is home to the most Superfund cleanup sites in the country.

A new film, Death by Design, takes a sobering look at the electronics industry and its toxic environmental legacy — both in the United States and in China. The film offers a behind-the-scenes look at the cost of the devices we consume in some measure of ignorance.

Apple features heavily in the film, though it’s not the only tech company implicated.

This week on Kahney’s Korner, I talk to the documentary’s director, Sue Wiliams, about Apple, pollution and Silicon Valley.

Apple gets one step closer to iPhones made in India

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Apple supplier is increasing its ability to build masses of iPhones in India
Designed in California, made in India. Maybe.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple has “sought incentives” to set up a manufacturing facility in India, according to a new report.

Apple reportedly made its case to the country’s Department of Revenue and Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeITY).

Sharp exec confirms next iPhone will have OLED display

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iOS and Android are killing off the competition.
Samsung is already using OLED in its phones.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

The next iPhone will get upgraded to an amazing OLED display, according to a Sharp executive who confirmed the long-standing rumor while speaking at Tatung University.

Sharp President Tai Jeng-wu, who is also an executive at Foxconn, told students that if Apple doesn’t switch to OLED iPhone, there won’t be any innovation.

Next year’s iPhone may come in 3 sizes

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iPhone 7 black
This could be the last iPhone made of metal.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple’s next iPhone will feature an all-glass back, according to the latest rumor out of Asia that also claims the 2017 iPhone will come in three different sizes, with one that’s in between the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.

Apple supplier now employs 40,000 robots to do its bidding

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Irobot
It'll still be a while before Foxconn's factories are totally automated, however.
Photo: 20th Century Fox

Apple supplier Foxconn has installed a massive 40,000 robots for handling manufacturing jobs at a number of its factories in China, claims a new report.

The industrial robots — named “Foxbots” — are currently being rolled out at factories in Zhengzhou, Kunshan, Jiashanm and a “tablet plant” in Chengdu, where Apple is known to produce iPads. Foxconn’s future robot production is expected to hit around 10,000 units per year.

iPhone 7 is already in transit from China

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Apple's shipping so many iPhone 6 devices that it's having an impact on rival manufacturers.
The iPhone 7 is already on its way, although you'll need to wait a bit longer to get it.
Photo: FedEx

Based on Apple’s usual ways of doing things, the iPhone 7 won’t be in the hands of customers until Friday, September 16, but that doesn’t mean they’re not yet in transit.

In fact, a new report claims that as of Monday this week a total of 371,000 units of next generation iPhones have already been shipped by Foxconn through customs in Henan province, China. These handsets are reportedly on their way to the U.S., UK, Netherlands and Italy.

Foxconn goes all out to recruit more iPhone 7 assemblers

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Apple
The iPhone 7 could be a bigger hit than anticipated.
Photo: Apple

Demand for the iPhone 7 is expected to be higher than many people expected, and Apple suppliers are taking on more employees to accommodate.

According to a new report, Foxconn is so desperate to employ new people to work on its production line that’s it been offering bonuses of more than $200 to any employees who can recommend other workers qualified for the job.

Curved glass 2017 iPhone is already keeping suppliers busy

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Galaxy Note 7 S Pen
Apple could be borrowing one of Samsung's big design features for next year's iPhone.
Photo: Samsung

The iPhone 7’s not even been officially unveiled yet, and already suppliers are prepping for next year’s tenth-birthday iPhone refresh, according to a new report.

Specifically, an equipment maker called Mirle Automation has reportedly been working on the necessary technology to replicate the 3D curved glass chassis seen on devices like the the Galaxy S7 edge and the new Galaxy Note 7. And it’s paying off.

Apple’s cost-cutting strategy draws ire of Chinese supply chain

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Foxconn employees accused of $43 million iPhone scam
Tim Cook meeting an iPhone manufacturer in China.
Photo: Apple

With iPhone demand slowing down, one of the ways in which Apple is hoping to increase earnings is by pushing its suppliers to work for less money — but it doesn’t seem to be going entirely to plan.

According to a new report, Apple is meeting resistance from manufacturers in its Taiwan-based supply chain as it requests that they lower quotes for iPhone 7 components by as much as 20 percent.

Apple pushes suppliers to take a price cut to secure orders

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Foxconn employees accused of $43 million iPhone scam
He's a shrewd operator is Tim Cook!
Photo: Apple

Unsurprisingly for a company with the kind of success Apple has experienced, it is quite adept at driving a hard bargain.

According to a new report, Apple has been trying to maintain its high gross margin at a time of slowing smartphone demand by asking its suppliers to work for less money. Major suppliers Largan Precision, Foxconn and Pegatron Technology have all been affected.