The notebook market next year may not be as strong as in 2020, but Acer remains optimistic, expecting a wave of replacement demand in the consumer sector in 2021. The 5G era may not have taken off to a flying start in 2020 because of...

Taiwan-based equipment makers including Csun Manufacturing and Gallant Precision Machining (GPM) expect strong demand from domestic IC substrates makers now all gearing up to build additional ABF substrates badly needed to process 5G, AI and HPC chips, according to industry sources.

Taiwan-based CCL maker Iteq expects shipments for 5G base stations, particularly sub-6GHz ones, to ramp up significantly in 2021, according to company chairman Dennis Chen.

C-Tech Development, which produces electrolytic copper foil used to manufacture CCLs for PCBs, is expected to see its shipments of high-frequency and high-speed materials for server applications to increase dramatically in 2021, according to industry sources.

Tesla is on track to ramp up EV production at its assembly plant in Shanghai, China, and Taiwan's PCB makers are gearing up to seek a bigger presence in the components supply chain for the US vendor, according to industry sources.

Equipment suppliers are optimistic about demand coming from the passive component sector, where leading players including Yageo and Walsin Technology have plans for capacity expansions.

Taiwan-based HDI PCB suppliers have put increased focus on their offerings for non-handset applications, looking to diversify their target markets, according to industry sources.

With Taiwan sustaining its firm leadership in the global PCB industry, China has been fast catching up due to its heavy capital expenses over the past five years, and PCB makers in both countries are entering a new stage of competition in the wake of the pandemic, according to industry sources.

The iPhone 12series are expected to see significant sales, with Apple likely to increase orders for its ecosystem partners. Apple will reportedly increase SLP orders with its PCB suppliers for the iPhone 12 mini, as the smaller-size...

Taiwan's IC packaging materials suppliers, including Niching Technology and Chang Wah Technology (CWTC), have seen their order visibility improve significantly, according to industry sources.

Taiwan's PCB makers Compeq Manufacturing and Unimicron, both now supplying SLP mainboards for iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 Pro Max, are likely to land additional orders from Apple as the former model stands a good chance of seeing better-than-expected sales, according to industry sources.

TSMC as a top-choice foundry partner for HPC (high performance computing) chips vendors will significantly benefit Taiwan suppliers of ABF substrates for processing such chips, according to Taiwan Printed Circuit Association (TPCA)

Apple is expected to accelerate the adoption of LCP (liquid crystal polymer)-based flexible PCBs for the antenna modules to be used by its future iPhone lineup supporting 5G mmWave technology, according to industry sources.

Chang Wah Technology (CWTC) broke ground for a new factory at its production complex in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan on October 15. The leadframe specialist expects to complete the facility construction by the end of 2021, followed by equipment move-in in the first quarter of 2022.

Tape COF substrate demand has been falling thanks partly to insufficient foundry support for LCD driver ICs, and may not pick up until the first quarter of 2021, prompting some makers including Chipbond Technology to reduce quotes for tape COF substrates, according to industry sources.

The market for system-in-package (SiP) substrates is already tight and will become tighter as Apple is looking to adopt SiP technology in more of its AirPods series, according to sources at Taiwan-based IC substrate suppliers.

Apple reportedly will have its next-generation AirPods series all adopt system-in-package (SiP) technology, which will significantly boost overall quartz component demand for the popular TWS earbuds in 2021, according to industry sources.

The adoption of GaN-based fast charging devices among smartphones and other consumer technology products is expected to grow rapidly starting 2021, according to industry sources.

Apple's new 5G smartphone series is expected to see significant sales momentum, with shipments for iPhone 12 devices standing a chance of hitting as many as 80 million units by the end of 2020, although the US vendor is looking to build...

GaAs foundry Win Semiconductor and its backend partners including Elite Advanced Laser (eLaser) are engaged in production of VCSEL chips for ToF-based LiDAR scanner for the iPhone 12 Pro series through US-based chipmaker Lumentum, according to industry sources.

Zhen Ding Technology, Compeq Manufacturing and Unimicron Technology have together landed nearly 60% of total substrate-like PCB (SLP) orders placed by Apple for its new iPhone 12 series, according to industry sources.

Many IC components have been in short supply due to insufficient foundry support. Now foundry houses are asking their fabless IC clients to book well in advance for capacity for 2021 to make sure they have enough support. The components...

International IDMs are keenly developing GaN-on-SiC RF and PA components to tap immense opportunities from communication applications, and Taiwan's III-V players including foundry Win Semiconductors, Visual Photonics Expitaxy (VPEC) and Transom are also actively building a presence in the segment,...

Unitech Printed Circuit Board and Dynamic Electronics have seen their PCB orders for automotive electronics and consumer device applications pick up so far in second-half 2020, with their sales gradually returning to normal levels after experiencing a lackluster first-half 2020, according to industry...

Demand for notebooks, tablets and other PCs buoyed Taiwan-based power inductor makers' revenues in September 2020, with Arlitech Electronic and Tai-Tech Advanced Electronics posting record-high levels.